The Inventions of Talbot and Giannini
by long live marshmallows
Summary: COMPLETED STORY: Tsuna & Co. travel back to Primo's time thanks to Talbot and have no way of getting back thanks to Giannini. Talbot ran out of materials to repair the time machine and Tsuna's Guardians have to be the ones to find the materials. Off they go on an adventure through Sicily's towns and cities to look for certain people who call themselves Gatherers...
1. Here We Go Again

**The Inventions of Talbot and Giannini**

Hi! In case you don't know me or haven't read something I've written before, I am long live marshmallows! Or LLM for short.

The **timeline **is a year and/or six months after Elena's death.

Oh, I'm warning you in advance: things may not be historically accurate.

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><p><strong>Summary:<strong> Tsuna, his Guardians, and Reborn travel back to Primo's time thanks to Talbot and have no way of getting back thanks to Giannini. Yeah, let's go back to our time, right? Wrong. Talbot's time machine is broken because it went past its limit of eight people to nine. He used up all the supplies he needs to repair it and Reborn forces his student and his Guardians to hunt them down, meeting odd people who reminds them of old enemies along the way. NO PAIRINGS! Meant to be a relaxing story with action here and there, made purely for amusement, no serious plot.

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

_19th century, Vongola Mansion._

The green grass that spread across acres of land blew slowly in the summer breeze, as did the leaves on the trees. The blue sky with not a single cloud in sight irritated some, while it pleased many. The maids and butlers were doing their jobs around the mansion as their seven masters trickled slowly to the meeting room. The halls leading to the private quarters were decorated with cheap but extremely beautiful ornaments. The only expensive things in the mansion were only where guests would be able to see them. There was no point in buying expensive things, and putting them in places where they would be destroyed within a week.

The massive wooden doors stood ominously at the end of such a corridor. Footsteps approached it with the slight sound of a tapping cane. The door opened with a slight moan, to alert the people inside if an _unexpected _visitor dropped by.

Around the table sat six men in their thirties, dressed in the clothing they usually wore. At the head was a blond man with soft, spiky hair. On his right was a man with red hair and a red tattoo of a flame surrounding his right eye, continuing down his neck. To his left was a man wearing traditional Japanese clothing. Beside the two sat a young man of twenty with short, green hair and a priest with a white bandage on his nose. Then the last two, who were emitting a dangerous aura because their fight was interrupted by a certain blonde. The one beside the green haired man had pale blond hair and wore a trench coat. The man sitting across him wore something suitable for an aristocrat.

"Hail, Giotto and Guardians," a forty year-old Talbot said when he opened the door to the meeting room. Giotto looked up from his quiet conversation to the blind man. He eyes were bandaged and he wore a heavy coat that hid secrets only the man knew of.

Everyone acknowledged the man in some way. Daemon smirked and Alaude continued to sit with his arms crossed, eyes closed. He only grunted, which was the equivalent of, "Hey, there." Talbot gained the respect of the law enforcer when Alaude tried "bringing him to justice", but received a good bruise from him instead.

"Hello, Talbot. Please, take a seat," Giotto said pleasantly. None rose to help him find one because they knew that Talbot would simply scold them for treating him like a blind man.

"Arg! You took your time! The great Lampo was getting bored out of his mind!" The green headed one complained, earning a glare from three of his peers. He shifted his chair away from Alaude and closer to Asari, the sole Japanese in the group, not to mention the nicest.

"Why did you call us here?" Alaude spoke when the man was seated comfortably on the other end of the long, polished table. "I have things to deal with in the CEDEF and not a moment to waste."

Giotto sighed. "Alaude, Talbot said that this will only take a minute."

"_Mm_, he has a point," Daemon said from two seats down and across from Alaude. "I would like to get out of here. I still have to prepare for my mission."

"Just shut up and listen to Talbot," G growled as Alaude glared at the mist user.

"Talbot, what is it that you needed?" Giotto asked quickly, to stop any fights that might happen between two of his Guardians.

"I have invented something and I wish to try it on all seven of you."

"No," Daemon and Alaude said at the same time. Again, they glared. Asari smiled slightly. Those two _never _agreed on anything.

"What did you invent?" Knuckle asked curiously.

Talbot showed them a toothy grin. "A time machine." Seven pairs of eyes stared at him in disbelief. Not a one believed in what he was saying.

"Are you being serious?" Lampo asked cautiously.

Asari looked thoughtful. "It sounds peculiar."

"Impossible," G stated.

"Talbot," Giotto said calmly. "Are you suggesting that you know how to time travel?"

"Yes," Talbot replied in the same manner.

Giotto blinked at the confident reply. His Hyper Intuition was telling him that this man wasn't lying. "But…how?" he finally asked.

"Giotto! You aren't telling me that you actually believe him!" G stood up from his seat, his cigarette clamped between two fingers.

"I believe him, although I don't understand how it's possible," Giotto explained to his friend. He turned to Talbot. "How does this work? Please explain."

"Yes, Giotto, I will certainly do that. _Ahem_," he cleared his throat before continuing. "Unlike most time traveling, you cannot time travel yourselves. But," he said when G and Lampo were about to interrupt him, "you may bring someone from the future into the past."

"How many can we bring back to the past?" Giotto asked after a slight hesitation.

"Eight."

"Why eight?" Lampo asked. "Why not three, or ten? Why eight?"

"That is the limit the time machine can do," Talbot said.

"Talbot…" Giotto started. He had his chin propped on his left hand while his right was quietly tapping the table. "Will we be able to send these people back to their own time?"

Talbot nodded slowly. "Yes, they will be able to return to their own time but I have never tried it before so I do not know one hundred percent whether it will work or not."

"Giotto, you're not actually...?" G asked. "What are you thinking about?"

Giotto concentrates on one spot of his Vongola Ring before answering. "The tenth generation of the Vongola Family…" Everyone looked at him. Even Alaude and Daemon seemed interested.

"Do you think the Vongola still exists at that time?" G asked.

Giotto closed his eyes for a moment, and stands up with a determined look in his eyes. "It doesn't matter whether Vongola of the Mafia still exists at that time. That's just the time period I'm aiming for. What I really want to see is our descendants and know that our troubles haven't gone down to their generation." He walked towards Talbot. G couldn't help but feel a little proud to be considered Giotto's close friend and right-hand man. "Talbot, shall we?"

Talbot grinned. "_Si_. Let us be off—to my lab." At those words, many of the Guardians rose to quickly follow their friend and the inventor.

The only ones left in the meeting room were Daemon and Alaude. The former became part of the mist and left for the lab. Alaude simply sat in the now empty room. After another moment's thought, he stood and followed the other Guardians.

The laboratory was located at the very bottom of the Vongola Mansion, or so the Guardians thought. Only Giotto and G knew the exact location. All the others walked towards the metal door slowly and cautiously.

Talbot stopped in front of the door and turned to them. "Welcome to my laboratory," he said and opened the doors dramatically.

There were several work tables all were littered with little bottles of mysterious substances the Vongola men were sure they didn't want to know about. G stopped to look at the drawings on the walls. The other Guardians looked around, surprised by how simple the room was.

"Is this everything?" Lampo sighed. "I thought it was a grand and secretive room of some sort."

Talbot chuckled. "Who told you that this was where I kept my most important inventions?" Some of them looked at him with confusion while others narrowed their eyes. He walked to a shelf filled with jars. "Only I know how to open the secret tunnel to my true laboratory," Talbot said. Alaude's eyes glare hatefully at this comment, for he was in charge of knowing about everything. Talbot went on to explain. "The way to open this door," he said as he felt along the ledge of the shelves, "is to know the Periodic Table of the Elements."

"Periodic Table of the…Elements?" Knuckle said. "What is that?"

Talbot laughed again. "It is a table which organizes all the elements which make up our earth—although it will not be known to the public for some time."

He touched the symbols on the wall in a sequence hidden from them and a secret passageway appeared through what they first thought was a crack. Not waiting for the Guardians to comprehend with the existence of a secret tunnel, Talbot entered with Giotto and G in tow.

When G noticed that none of the others were following, he turned back and said, "By the way, if you don't enter within the next ten seconds, the doors will close on their own and we won't open it until we return. All of them stood there stunned except for one. Alaude made his way through and the dark corridor lit by torches. The rest followed in a hurry, not wanting to be left behind in whatever Talbot planned to do.

"Nufufufufufu...this is getting really interesting," Daemon said. Lampo shivered and regretted his position. Not only was he in front of the illusionist, but he was walking behind Alaude.

They've been walking for a good twenty minutes when Lampo began complaining. "Giotto, my feet are hurting."

"We will be there soon," Giotto reassured his youngest guardian.

"You said that five minutes ago…" He heard Giotto chuckle. Alaude suddenly stopped, making Lampo freeze before he touched the man. "Alaude, why did you stop?" he questioned.

"Alaude?" Giotto paused.

"Mansion border."

"What?"

"We are out of the Vongola Mansion and heading towards the forest. Where is this laboratory?" He directed the sharp question at the blind man. "There have been no buildings in the forest for over a hundred years."

"As expected from Giotto's Guardian," Talbot said as he continued walking. "Yes, Alaude. We are beyond the grounds of the Vongola Mansion now. My laboratory is indeed in the forest, but underground with now way up. Ah, here we are." The rest walked faster to catch up. "Giotto, if you please." Talbot turned to Primo behind him.

"Yes," said Giotto. His Guardians looked at each other questioningly. Giotto lit his Vongola Ring and placed it into the key hole.

"Wait a moment," Asari said. "If Giotto has to do that every time to open the door, how does Talbot-san enter his own lab?"

Talbot said, "It is for extra protection. Whenever I leave this place with a priceless invention inside, I set the lock to G-Mode."

They turned to Giotto's right-hand man who scowled at the name of the lock meant for his boss. "It's not my fault Giotto's mother decided to give him a name beginning with the letter G."

"Anyways, I'm getting really curious about this invention," Giotto said when he stepped inside. The room was empty but for one object: a white square was against one wall with complicated buttons on a control panel which looked extremely out of place.

"Talbot, what is that?" Lampo asked as he reached out to touch it.

G smacked his head with a scowl. "Don't touch it! You might ruin it like how you destroyed my revolver!"

"I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Enough!" Talbot put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Everyone, gather around over there. Make sure you are all together."

They walked onto the area marked with an X.

"Talbot? Where exactly did you get that?" G asked, pointing to the control panel.

"I transported it here from the future."

"You what?"

"I have transported things and animals from the future into our present time, but I have not done it to humans before."

"Talbot, you're taking others' possessions without their consent," Giotto said with a frown.

Alaude took out a pair of handcuffs. "By taking things that don't belong to you by force, you are breaking the law."

Giotto put a hand on Alaude's shoulder before he could do anything to Talbot. When his Cloud Guardian glared at him, Giotto gave him a weak smile and lifted the hand. "How about we wait until…after?" he suggested lightly. "Or I can let you go to the mission in France you requested?" he offered quietly. Alaude's eyes narrowed. He had always wanted to go there to see how strong they were because according to rumours, France's intelligence force is on par with the one he used to be head of before he created CEDEF. He put down the handcuffs after giving Talbot a warning glare.

"Well, on we go," Talbot said, ignoring the feeling of a glare. He pressed a button and white specks surrounded the family.

"What's this?" Asari asked as he raised his hand.

"It is calling towards your descendants. If they are in the future, they will appear." After a few tense minutes, the white spots disappeared.

They waited for two minutes.

Nothing happened.

"Talbot, you wasted our time!" G glowered. "I can't believe I went along with this!"

Alaude grunted an agreement and walked towards the exit. "Primo, I will be expecting the mission file tomorrow morning," he said over his shoulder. Giotto gulped. _I didn't prepare a file yet! _he thought in his head. He turned to his best friend.

"G…"

"No."

Giotto stared at his friend. "But—"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

Giotto's shoulders sagged as he, too, left the room.

Asari laughed it off and Knuckle gave a dumbfounded Talbot a pat. "Don't worry, Talbot! Everyone makes mistakes!"

"But…they were supposed to appear! It worked on other things," he told the Sun Guardian.

Asari came up to them and smiled. "Don't worry, Talbot-san. I'm sure it wasn't your fault."

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

Tsuna thought that things would _finally _return back to normal after freeing the Arcobalenos from their curse. Normality in his life lasted for another year, but apparently, that was the limit before things concerning the Vongola began to go haywire.

Throughout that year, things weren't technically _normal, _if one followed the definition of normal in the dictionary. Some changes that happened right after was Reborn moving out of Tsuna's room…only to be put into the room across. Now that he was a fully fledged adult, Tsuna's room was too small for two people, so Nana agreed that he should have his own room. Why would she agree with a total "stranger"?

"Dame-Tsuna," a deep voice said. "Wake—"

"_HIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! _Please don't kill me!" Tsuna screamed, pulling his blanket up to his head and shimmying to the far wall, away from the hitman. He was having such a wonderful dream when that voice came through to his head. His eyes snapped open and he couldn't stop himself from screaming. He shivered under the covers, feeling the frightening aura seep out of the hitman.

That was one bad thing of being stronger. It meant that he could feel the faintest auras and tell whether they had good intentions or not. Reborn's aura was something he had never really experienced before when he was still a baby. But when the curse lifted off the infants, it flowed out with a vengeance. Even when Reborn wasn't trying, he was as scary as hell.

Reborn sighed. Leon, resting on the fedora hat, turned into a hammer. Reborn tossed it in his hands comfortably. Using his left hand, he slammed it into his pupil's figure. The wall cracked as Tsuna crashed into it. The force took his breath away and left him curled in a ball. Reborn pulled the blankets off.

"Tsuna, why are you still making me wake you up? You're in your third year of middle school, and if you still can't wake yourself up seven in the morning without an alarm clock, you're hardly fit to become Vongola Decimo.

"I told you, I'm not going to be the boss of Vongola!" Tsuna yelled pleadingly, totally forgetting the fear he had seconds before. Reborn glared and Tsuna whimpered.

Reborn raised an eyebrow. "Hurry up. Your breakfast is downstairs and half of it is most likely eaten by Lambo already. Oh, and it's five to eight."

Tsuna's eyes widened as he tore off the blanket and rushed to the closet to find a clean uniform. "Reborn! If you're going to wake me up, why didn't you do so earlier?!"

"I thought you were changing or taking a shower." Reborn lounged on the chair. Tsuna groaned as he thought of being bitten to death by Hibari. Clothes flew and the door slammed. Tsuna fell down the stairs and picked himself back up. He arrived at the table and picked up his glass of milk, drinking it in three seconds, only to choke when he saw Reborn eating his omelette calmly.

_H-How did he get down here before me? _ He took a slice of bread and spread some butter over it before slapping on another slice. Holding it, he ran to the door.

"I'm leaving!"

"Be safe!" Nana said before the door closed. She sighed with a smile as she watched her son run down the road.

"Good morning, Mama," Bianchi said when she entered.

"Oh! Good morning!" Nana sang.

"MAMA! LAMBO-SAN WANTS SECONDS!"

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><p>Tsuna sighed as he rested his head on his desk. It was only the first week of school and he already managed to get hit by Hibari for <em>almost <em>being late.

"Good morning, Juudaime!"

Yamamoto grinned. "You look tired!"

Tsuna moaned. How couldhis friends be this hyper in the morning? It was not a good sign.

"Shut up, baseball freak! Of course Juudaime is tired! That damn teacher assigned so much homework that's due the next day!"

"Ah…calm down, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna said, standing up. Gokudera grumbled and sat down beside Tsuna. This year, he was determined to sit next tohis boss so he could protect him better.

"Oh! There is supposed to be a UFO sighting tonight! Are you interested in coming to see it, Juudaime?"

Tsuna sighed. "I would _love _to go, Gokudera-kun, but Reborn dragged me into this meeting with the Ninth…I wonder what it's about…I DON'T WANT TO GO!" He wailed and tugged at his messy brown hair.

"Oh, be quiet, Sawada!" Hana scowled. "You're as loud as Ryohei!"

Kyoko giggled and Tsuna blushed.

"Sorry…"

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><p>Tsuna came home late at night with Reborn walking in front of him. "I can't believe that took three hours! All I did there was learning how to sit properly, how to speak properly, how to walk properly, and how to eat properly!" He rolled up the sleeves and unbuttoned the first button on his shirt, which was practically strangling him.<p>

"All those things are essential to becoming a good boss," Reborn said and whacked Tsuna on the head. He pitched forward.

"But do I have to be dressed in _this?" _Tsuna waved at the formal dress shirt and pants.

"You have to get used to it," his tutor replied. "And be thankful that Nono came all the way here to teach you."

"Eh?"

"It is the previous boss' responsibility to teach the next boss the proper manners and how to act in front of other families. If Nono didn't come to Japan, I would be shipping you off to Italy this instant."

Tsuna imagined himself being crammed in a dark box with only an apple and his thoughts to keep him company. He paled.

"We will continue your training until Nono deems you ready to meet the Mafia society."

"EEEP!"

"Obviously, that time will be very far away," Reborn muttered. Louder, he said, "If you're smart, you'll want to speed up the process, or else." He didn't need to finish the sentence.

_I wish I just went looking for UMAs with Gokudera-kun…_

"I'm home!" Tsuna said when he opened the door, knowing his mother won't go the bed until he returned.

"Welcome back! How did it go?"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "It was really tiring, but okay, I guess."

"Do you need to eat anything?"

Tsuna sweated bullets. "N-No…I'll pass…" _I had to redo the eating practice so many times I'm going to have permanent nightmares about food… _

His hands still cramped from holding different spoons and forks. For goodness sake, Reborn even suggested that Tsuna's eating utensils should be sharp enough to be turned into weapons in case of an attack during meal times!

"Very well. Oh, Reborn-kun, you have a guest waiting in the living room," she added.

Reborn smiled. "Thanks, Nana." Tsuna found it strange to hear the bab—the _man _call his mother Nana after hearing "Mama!" for two years. True, Reborn has been reverted back to adult form with the other Arcobalenos for about a year, but it still seemed…weird. Tsuna tripped on something and fell flat on his face on the living room floor.

"Ow…_HIIE! ITE-ITE-ITE-ITE-ITE!" _he screamed as something large fell on his back, making his arms and legs go up in an arc. He turned his bulging eyes to whatever lay on top of him.

"G-Giannini, what are you doing here?" Tsuna shrieked. He stiffened when he felt Reborn's anger waft towards him.

"Dame-Tsuna…if I hear that awful, ear-piercing scream one more time…"

"H-Hai, R-Reborn…!"

"Good evening, Juudaime!" Giannini greeted. "And you too, Reborn!" Giannini rolled his machine off Tsuna and landed on the floor. He stepped out grinning.

Tsuna groaned and rubbed his back. "Don't tell me you invented something else…" Sure, the Giannini nine years later was a genius but he doubted that this one knew what he was doing.

"Why, how did you know? I have something I wanted to show you and Reborn!"

"What is it?" Reborn asked. Giannini took a single bullet out of his pocket. It was red and black. Tsuna gulped as Reborn cocked a brow.

"What is this, Giannini?" He plucked it from the inventor's palm.

"It's a returning bullet!" Giannini said excitedly. "Whenever you shoot this bullet, it comes back to you after hitting its target! This way, you don't need to worry about running out of bullets."

"It will just hit me instead," Reborn said as Leon turned into a green gun, nonetheless. Tsuna backed away.

"No, no! It goes back into its box! And when your gun runs out of bullets, it automatically refills!" Reborn had finished slowly putting the bullet into his gun, taking out the usual Dying Will bullets.

"Oh really? Have you tried it on anything?"

Tsuna looked around for a safe place to hide.

"No, I haven't tried it out yet. I wanted to bring it to you at the first possible second!"

That didn't sound good. Tsuna glanced at his tutor who was staring at his gun with a smirk. Tsuna twitched and almost fainted.

BAM!

Tsuna stood frozen as it slammed into the wall behind him. A very faint burn appeared on his arm. He gulped and stared in horror. After five seconds, the bullet did not return. They looked at Giannini.

"Giannini," Reborn said threateningly.

He was interrupted by a shout from Tsuna: "Ahh!" Reborn felt a tug but stood firm, looking around. Nothing was pulling him… "Reborn, stop pulling me!" Tsuna screamed. Tsuna was being dragged against the floor towards the hitman who glared at Giannini.

"What exactly happened?"

Giannini gulped. "Maybe it's a m-malfunction…?"

"B-But why am I being pulled towards Reborn?" Tsuna asked as he held onto whatever he could reach: Giannini's round travel ball.

"M-Maybe instead of the b-bullet, it's whatever the bullet had hit which r-r-re-returns?" Giannini suggested.

"HIIEE!" Tsuna's fingers lost their grip and he flew to Reborn's back. They would have fallen from the impact if Reborn wasn't ready.

"Giannini, how long is this going to last?" Reborn asked. His student's back was stuck to his and there was no way of pulling him off. Tsuna even tried to take the shirt off, but it seemed like his _skin _was stuck.

"Uh… a few hours? Maybe…a day?" Tsuna groaned. How was he going to sleep? And do other stuff? And worse, Reborn was _pretty _angry at the moment.

"Giannini…"

_**#$%^5673q9%!**_

Let's just say that Giannini won't be showing Reborn any prototypes for a while…

"R-Reborn…how am I going to sleep?" Tsuna asked. Reborn remained silent."A-And how am I going to—?" Reborn stalked to the yard and yanked the sliding door open.

"Eh? Reborn?" It had started to rain outside. "What are you doing?" He walked out. "EEP! Reborn! We're getting wet!" Tsuna tried to pull them back into the house, but he couldn't match Reborn's strength. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

"Training you to stay physically strong during the rain," Reborn finally said. "The rain will become your best friend before you know it."

"I already have rain as my best friend! Doesn't Yamamoto count?" Tsuna shrieked. After fifteen minutes, they went back inside the warm house. Tsuna would have cried with relief if Reborn wasn't tugging him somewhere else. He opened a door Tsuna never knew existed inside his house. He gawped when he saw a steaming room.

"A-A SAUNA! WHEN DID WE GET A SAUNA!"

"Tsu-kun! What's going on?" Nana called up the stairs. "Go to sleep! It's getting late."

"O-Okay..."

Reborn pulled them in and shut the door. "What are you doing _now?" _Tsuna was starting to get annoyed.

"Control the way you breathe. With this thick atmosphere, you will find it hard to do even that." Tsuna finally noticed that it was more humid than other saunas that he went to before. After another fifteen minutes of troubled breathing, Reborn let them out and sat them on the cold floor of Tsuna's room. He was dead on his feet.

"Hnnn…? Why can't I sit on something softer?" He whined.

"This is for getting me in this mess, Dame-Tsuna. Also, it's training for when you might have to follow a target."

Tsuna groaned as they sat vigil for the night.

* * *

><p>Reborn awoke a few minutes before seven. He turned to his student who was still asleep. He was about to hit him on the head when he noticed that he looked slightly transparent. His eyes narrowed. His pupil was still <em>there, <em>but it looked like he was disappearing. The only thing stopping that from happening… was Reborn!

"Dame-Tsuna! Wake up!"

"AAAH! DON'T KILL ME...E-Eh! What's happening? Why am I going invisible?"

Reborn swore. Knowing from previous experience, they won't be around for at least a few days, maybe weeks. He wrote a quick note to Nana telling her that he was taking Tsuna for an extended training trip, signing with his name. Then he whipped out Leon and called Iemitsu.

"Iemitsu, tell Nono that there has been a problem and that Tsuna won't be able to practice with him until we find out what's going on."

"_Why? What's happening?"_

"It seems like we're going to be time traveling again, but this time the ten-year bazooka isn't involved. I don't know what's going on. Tell Giannini that I'm going to kill him when we get back."

"_Right! Gotcha! Keep my son safe, Reborn!"_

"Of course." He allowed a tiny smirk to appear on his face before ending the call. Just as that happened, the bullet's effect wore off and they were separating, but it was too late because Reborn, too, was beginning to seem transparent with white specks dancing around them.

Tsuna froze. "Why does that white and green stuff look like what surrounded us when we travelled back to the present from the future?" he asked. Reborn scowled. Then they fell into empty space which had a purplish colour, but a shade darker than the ten-year bazooka. "Why is this happening!"

Reborn twisted his student's arm backwards as they fell. "This is your fault, Tsuna."

"MY FAULT? You're the one who decided to use me as a target!" Reborn grimaced at the validity of his point.

They fell into a black void.

* * *

><p>Gokudera was walking home in the early morning humming a happy tune. He wasn't able to see any UMAs, but it was entertaining to see the convention that took place near the area. He was fishing out his keys when he noticed something was wrong with his body. Before he knew it, he was travelling through a purple vortex.<p>

"Tch! What now?" As he fell, he cursed his luck and hoped that Tsuna was alright.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw trees.

"Shit!" He fell through the branches and landed on the ground. He grunted and got up to look at his surroundings. "I'm in a forest…oh no…don't tell me that Juudaime…" His face paled and felt cold all over. He started to run, hoping that he was wrong.

* * *

><p>"OW!" Tsuna yelped. Reborn landed on his feet and watched as Tsuna fell on his back.<p>

"You still have a lot to learn, Dame-Tsuna." They look around. Finding nothing, Reborn said, "Your Guardians are probably in the same situation. Look for them. I'll go investigate."

"Eh? Why do I have to look for them? And are you leaving me alone in this place?"

Reborn stares at him with black eyes like the pits of hell. "You're the boss." He walked away, daring his student to follow. When he didn't, he smirked.

_Arg…how am I going to find them? _Tsuna asked himself as he started a light jog. Minutes later, he bumped into someone. "Ow… why am I always bumping into people these days?"

"JUUDAIME!"

"Eh? Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna felt relieved that he found his friend.

For some reason, Gokudera began to bow, knocking his forehead against the ground. "I'M SORRY JUUDAIME! I FAIL AS YOUR RIGHT-HAND MAN! I LET YOU—I LET YOU DIE AGAIN! I'M SO SORRY!"

"HIII—!" Tsuna stopped mid-shriek, remembering Reborn's warning. He looked around to make sure the hitman was nowhere to be seen. "N-No, Gokduera-kun! I didn't die! I didn't die!"

Gokudera stopped and looked up with teary eyes. "Really?"

Tsuna nodded quickly. "Come on, Gokudera-kun. We have to find the others."

"Hai, Juudaime!"

"I wonder where we are…"

"These woods look different than the ones we have at home in Italy," Gokudera said thoughtfully. "They seem younger." He began his explanation of trees and how to tell how old they were. Tsuna tried to listen but as always, Gokudera in Theory-Mode was something he could never understand. Then they reached the end of the trees.

They gasped. "That mansion…"

Acres of land spread in all directions covered with green grass or gardens and ponds.

"That's…Vongola Mansion…" Tsuna whispered.

"Well," Gokudera said hesitantly. "That's to be expected…you _are _the boss in the future, so it's only right that you live in the Vongola Mansion…"

"But it looks too _new," _Tsuna said. "The walls…they're so…so _new _that it looks like it was only built a few years ago!" He turned to see Gokudera deep in thought.

"Juudaime…maybe it's possible…that we traveled to the past instead?"

Tsuna paled visibly. "Oh no…I _don't _want to change history…" he collapsed to the ground with Gokudera next to him.

"Juudaime! That's just my guess! I might be wrong! Maybe we renovated or something!"

"Y-Yeah…" Gokudera hated seeing his boss this nervous but he didn't know what to do.

Tsuna took in a deep breath and steadied himself for Gokudera's sake. "Let's go in. If we really do live here, we just need to find Shoichi-kun and Spanner. Or someone who will recognise us."

They were puzzled when they saw a wooden door instead of a metal one, or a glass one. Tsuna opened it. Inside, the corridors were new and the floor was slabs of stone. They continued to walk as the birds outside chirped.

_It's so calm here… _Tsuna thought as they walked through corridors and up staircases.

They stopped by a white set of double doors. Should they open it? Gokudera gave Tsuna an encouraging nod of the head. Tsuna put a hand on the handle and pushed it open to reveal a room lit by the rising sun. The style of the furniture was old but the material was new. Tsuna puzzled over this. Did he have such an odd taste in the future? The doors closed with a quiet click which sounded awfully loud to their ears.

And then they saw that they weren't alone in the room. The two of them stare at the man sitting near a large window, a cup of a steaming drink put at the side. Papers were all over the desk and a fountain pen in his hand as he scrawled away. Their jaws dropped at the sight of blond, soft hair, flopping down in spikes, and orange eyes. He wore a pinstriped dress shirt. They continued to stare with their jaws on the ground.

"Who are you?" The man asked them in Italian. At first, neither of them answered because they were so shocked. The man noticed this and frowned in confusion.

_H-H-He spoke! _Tsuna and Gokudera thought in utter amazement. And then the significance of that finally settled in.

_Oh, crap, _they thought. _We're in the past._

* * *

><p>Yamamoto was out practising baseball when he travelled back in time. "Tsuna and the kid must be up to something fun again," he said cheerfully and made sure to grab Shigure Kintoki.<p>

Ryohei was doing his morning run when he was transported. "EXTREME!" Was the last thing to be heard before he too, disappeared.

Chrome and Mukuro were resting in Kokuyo Land. Chrome stirred whereas Mukuro was fully awake and angry. "Kufu…Sawada Tsunayoshi…are you dragging me into your mafia business again?"

Lambo had fallen asleep after eating breakfast. I-pin was passing by the mat when she saw her friend fading in white and green light. "Lambo!"

Hibari was napping on Namimori Middle's rooftop and didn't wake up through the process. Hibird chirped as he landed on Hibari's chest. _"Hibari! Hibari!"_

* * *

><p>Giotto looked up from the file he was anxiously finishing for his Cloud Guardian to look into the eyes of his double. The pen fell to the table and he stood up and leaped away from the desk. <em>Who are they?<em> _How did they get in without alerting the guards?_

He shot out a question at them, demanding an answer. Their eyes widened impossibly larger and continued to stare at him for another second before registering his words.

They exchanged a look and the shorter one of the two cleared his throat. "I-I'm Sawada…Tsunayoshi…"

Then the boy nudged his friend who snapped out of his revere. He bowed deeply. "I'm Gokudera-Hayato! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Giotto paused. The shorter of the two wore a dress shirt and pants. Nothing out of the ordinary, if he came from a good family. But his companion had on clothes he's never seen before…

To be exact, Gokudera was wearing baggy jeans and a zip up red and black sweater. There was a picture of a skull on the sleeve. He had multiple rings on his fingers and his Buckle of the Storm on his belt.

Giotto didn't think there was anything wrong with telling them his name. Maybe it will even scare them? He would be sorry if it did, but he would see what happened. "I am Giotto, Boss of the Vongola Famiglia." They nod and remained silent. _They don't seem to mean us any harm, _he thought. _But they haven't finished introducing themselves. And why the heck does one of them look similar to G?_

* * *

><p><em>I wonder if he's going to find out we're from the future! <em>Tsuna wailed in his mind but tried to keep his face straight. _Does the Hyper Intuition stretch that far, to tell someone if another person belongs in their time or not? _Giotto was about to speak again when they hear thumping coming from the hall. They look at each other. Before anyone could speak, G barged in holding something. Tsuna uses this chance to whisper to Gokudera, "Don't call me Juudaime. It will ruin everything."

"Hai, Juu—erm…S-Sawada-sama…"

Tsuna sweat dropped. "That won't do. Call me Tsuna! Everyone else calls me that."

"But…I won't be respecting you then…"

"Gokudera," Tsuna said in the voice he used on Lambo. It seemed to work all the same.

"Hai…T-Tsuna…ugh, I can't do it, Juudaime! I'm sorry! I'll call you Sawada-san!"

Tsuna nodded reluctantly. "I guess that's better…" All this happened in three seconds as G marched through.

"Giotto! What the hell is this? I found it in my room!" He stomped his way toward his friend and showed him a baby dressed in cow prints. The baby and Giotto faced each other, nose to nose. Then the child started to cry.

"Lambo!" a boy exclaimed. G turns to the unfamiliar voice and saw a boy who looked a lot like his friend. He blinked and let the cow fall.

"Tsuna!"

Tsuna picked the kid up and held him protectively, away from G.

"_GIOTTO!"_ Giotto flinched from the shout. He hadn't heard G this loud in a _long _time… "HOW THE HELL DID YOU LET THESE KIDS GET IN HERE?!" The entire room shook and echoed. Tsuna's eardrums might have burst.

"I didn't let them in!" Giotto exclaimed. "Whatever gave you that idea!?"

"THEY'RE STANDING RIGHT THERE!" He pointed at Tsuna...and stared. "What the hell? Why the hell does one of them look like your blood relative? You don't have any. Are they spies?"

Giotto gave the shorter boy another look. Sure enough, there was a slight resemblance. "They aren't spies trying to disguise themselves as us or our relatives," he said calmly. "If they are, they are terrible at it. If they were good, they would at least look Italian and people with the proper height. The hair needs some dye as well."

"What?" Gokudera exclaimed.

"Gokudera, calm down!" Tsuna said hurriedly, forgetting to speak in Italian. The two older men raised their brows.

G rolled his eyes. "You're right… they fail miserably. They chose two foreigners to act it out."

"Oi! Look who you're talking to!" Gokudera growled. "Who's a foreigner here, idiot? I'm Italian!"

G snorted. "Whatever. Tell us how you infiltrated our mansion." He directed the question at the loud, annoying kid, thinking that he was the leader of the two, since the other, smaller figure, seemed too puny to order the taller one around. To his surprise, the one known as Gokudera turned to the brown haired boy.

The brunet took a deep breath and said, "M…My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi, and this is Gokudera Hayato. We...don't know how we got here?" He looked at Gokuddera as if asking, "Is that the same with you?" Gokudera nodded confirmation. But to their ancestors, it looked as if Tsuna was asking if he said the right thing. G's eyes shown with suspicion.

"TSUNA!" Their eyes turned to Lambo. "I want food!"

"Eh? But didn't you just have breakfast with kaa-san?"

"I'm still hungry!"

"Don't be such a—GRROOOUUU…" Tsuna blushed and looked at his own stomach. He didn't eat breakfast and apparently, the food he ate last night didn't last.

"Juudaime…" Gokudera muttered. "Did you eat breakfast?"

"No…I was just waking up when I was transported—" Tsuna stopped himself.

"Transported…?" Giotto said. He decided that since the boy had such an accent, it would be better if they spoke in their native tongue. He didn't get to ask his question because someone opened the door. In came Alaude, as graceful as ever.

"Primo," he said, ignoring the two guests for the moment. "My file." Tsuna noticed that Giotto paled slightly.

_Don't tell me…he's also afraid of his Cloud Guardian! Please don't let me get my clumsiness from him. Oh, please no…_

"I…eh…Alaude, another matter has come up," Giotto said quickly. G snorted. Obviously, his friend had forgotten about putting together a mission file for Alaude last night so he was trying to do it in the morning. "You see these two?" Alaude looked at the boys. They watched his reaction as he compared their faces to the two of his comrades. An eyebrow came up. He came up with one conclusion.

"Intruders who passed my security," Alaude murmured. "Disguising themselves as you."

"You let two measly little kids get by Vongola's SECURITY?!" G was hysterical. Giotto hasn't seen him like that in _years. Not since..._ he shook the thought away.

Alaude narrowed his eyes at the insult. His handcuffs came out as he ran at the two men. G swore and brought out his gun whereas Giotto looked slightly panicked.

"N-Not here, Alaude! I just had this place fixed up last week!" he exclaimed and tried to dodge on of Alaude's blows.

Tsuna let out a weak shriek when glass shattered. Gokudera stood protectively in front of him as they watched the scene play out.

G fired a warning shot but Alaude simply turned and whacked his face.

"Alaude, G, stop," Giotto commanded.

Tsuna stared in awe when he saw the flame on Primo's forehead. He never looks like that when _he's _in Hyper Dying Will Mode!

The two separated as if suddenly shocked but they continued to glare at each other. "We don't know who they are or how they got here. All we know are their names," Giotto said.

Alaude's eyes stared at Tsuna and Gokudera. Tsuna's eyes widen and try to walk backwards but Alaude's handcuffs snapped around his arms.

"Why you!" Gokudera yelled. Alaude turned to him and cuffed the threatening fist and then the other. He turned to the baby with an afro, who was holding onto Tsuna's head for all he was worth. Alaude decided that a weak little baby like him won't do anything.

"Walk," Alaude ordered.

"Wait," Giotto said. He was still in Hyper Mode, taking advantage of it. "Speak Japanese. I think that's the language they are used to."

"Is this true?" Alaude asked them in fluent Japanese.

Tsuna gulped and nodded. "H-Hai…"

Alaude grunts. "I'm taking them to the torture chambers."

Giotto's eyes sharpened and he shot Alaude a warning look. Alaude returned it with a bland one. _Do you really think I'm going to torture them?_

"HIIIEE!" Tsuna shrieked. Alaude pushed them out of the room. Tsuna realised that Lambo is still clutching onto his hair. He wrapped his leg around the door frame. This caused Alaude and Gokudera to stop as well.

"Lambo, I think you should stay here!" Tsuna said quickly. There was _no way in hell _he was going to let a baby be tortured with them. If that was on the agenda.

He looked at Alaude's cold eyes.

It was on the agenda.

"I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE!" Lambo screamed. He didn't recognise anyone here and he felt safest with Tsuna.

"Come on, Lambo!" Tsuna said. _You don't want to go where we're going! _

"Get off, you stupid cow! You're such a nuisance! Stop causing us so much trouble and listen to what you're told for once!" Gokudera growled.

Tsuna tried another way to convince the baby since Alaude looked like he was ready to kill them right then and there. "Lambo, they'll feed you if you stay!" He gave Giotto a pleading look. He didn't have to try too hard, since Giotto had the same idea in mind. If Tsuna hadn't spoken first, he would have asked Alaude to let the baby stay here instead. He gives Tsuna a reassuring smile and a nod.

"Come here…Lambo, is it? We'll find you some breakfast. How do pancakes sound?"

"KYAHA!" Lambo jumped off Tsuna and made his way towards Giotto. "Baka Tsuna! You better come back quickly or else I'll eat all the food!" Lambo warned.

"Y-Yeah!" Tsuna said.

Alaude dragged him down the hall.

"Come on, G," Giotto said as he guided them to the dining hall. _That boy is very considerate of his friends._

* * *

><p>Asari was sitting, facing the gardens with a cup of green tea. He enjoyed watching nature and observing the movements of the animals.<p>

POOF!

His head snapped to the left, where he heard something odd. He returned the cup of tea to its place and started toward the noise. What he found behind the rose bushes was _not _what he expected. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw a boy no older than sixteen lying on the grass smiling up at him.

"Good morning!" the boy said cheerfully. Asari smiled. How long has it been since he spoke to someone from his own country?

"Good morning, young man. What are you doing down there?"

He laughed. "I don't really know, exactly. One minute I was practicing, and the next, I was here!"

It sounded suspicious to Asari. _Should I tell Giotto? He might be a spy trying to get close to me by speaking my own language. _The boy stood up, leaning his bamboo sword against his shoulders and holding it lazily with both arms. Asari's brow rose. A bamboo sword. Interesting…

"What is your name?"

"My name is Yamamoto Takeshi! Pleased to meet you!"

"I am Ugetsu Asari. Vongola Primo's Rain Guardian." Like he expected, the teen's expression became guarded.

"Did…you just say…that you're…Vongola…_Primo_…'s Rain…Guardian…?" Yamamoto said slowly. Asari nodded, ready to move if he suddenly attacked. He _didn't _expect the youth to laugh.

"That's the coolest joke ever! There's no way you can be him!" Asari's eyes showed confusion. "By the way, have you seen any of my friends?"

"You have other friends here?" Asari asked, instantly alert.

"Well, yeah…if I'm here, they're probably here as well."

Asari stayed quiet as he thought. Then he smiled. "Follow me. I'll show you to my boss."

Yamamoto grinned. "Sure!"

Asari led them away from the gardens and into the mansion. Yamamoto's smile was still on his face, but inside, he wasn't smiling. _If this is Asari…the first Vongola's Guardian of the Rain…does that mean that I'm in the past? _He looked up at the clear, blue sky, unpolluted by air traffic and greenhouse gases. _Tsuna…_

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Lambo was sitting in the dining room waiting for the food impatiently. Giotto sat at the head, with G to his right.<p>

"Eh? Eh? Where is everybody else? You have so many chairs here!" Lambo asked Giotto and ignored G. He'd rather talk to a Tsuna-look-a-like over a Gokudera-look-a-like any day.

Giotto gave him a smile. "They all have their own things to do. One of them is traveling right now," he ticked off a finger for Daemon, who left just an hour ago for his mission. "Another one is probably taking a stroll in the gardens…hm. Another friend of ours is doing his morning prayers." He pointed to G. "This one, is eating breakfast with me before going over everything for the meeting we're going to have later…the youngest one is most likely sleeping in. And…" What should he tell Lambo about Alaude? "And Alaude, the man you saw, will be with those two friends of yours."

"Giotto!" G rapped his knuckles hard on the table three times. "Should you really be telling this brat about all the whereabouts of your Guardians?"

Giotto gave him an innocent look. "Well, he's only a child. What can he do with the information?" Meanwhile, Lambo had zoned out, paying more attention to the smell of food reaching his sensitive nose.

"NYAHAHA! THE FOOD'S HERE!"

The maid who came in with their food cooed over Lambo's cuteness while G mumbled, "He isn't staying. Don't get too attached."

"We are sheltering him for a while," Giotto explained to the maid who gave G an odd look.

"Y-Yes, Primo! Shall I prepare a room for him?" she asked hesitantly, unsure of why her boss was telling her this. She was one of the newer maids and even though she was assured by the more senior ones, she still found it uncomfortable to call her boss by his given name.

"Just call me Giotto, Margaret."

She bristled. "I-I can't call you that!"

"Sure you can," a tired voice said from the doorway. Lambo saw the person who sneaked up on him while he was in the toilet.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

Lampo stared back. "The great Lampo hate kids. Why is he here and who is he?"

"Good morning, Lampo. We don't know why Lambo is here yet. Why don't you sit down and introduce yourself?" Giotto asked. Lampo frowned when he used Japanese. Didn't he know he sucked at it? But he answered in kind anyways.

"I'm Lampo, Giotto's Lightning Guardian. Bother me and I will throw you into a well. Margaret, I'm eating in my rooms. It's too noisy here." He walked out without another glance.

"Yes, Master Lampo…"

"Hm…" G mused.

"What?" Giotto asked. "Thanks, Margaret," he added with a smile.

"You're welcome, Primo." She quickly wallked away before Giotto could ask her to call him Giotto.

"Lampo…and Lambo…their names sound similar."

"Now that you mention it…" Giotto chewed on his breakfast and put an elbow on the table. Bad manners, yes, but no one's here to judge… He examined Lambo, who had to sit on a few cushions to see the table.

"There aren't many similarities between them though…other than their attitude."

G snorted. "This brat's more annoying than Lampo."

"Lambo-san is not annoying, Octopus-Pink Head!"

Giotto froze. His eyes slowly shifted to his friend's face. If Asari taught them correctly…

He choked down his laughter and tried to mask it as a cough. G's face turned beet red.

"_COUGH! _Ah…excuse me—_COUGH! COUGH!" _Giotto pushed back his chair and put his head down as he smacked the arm of the chair. He laughed silently for three minutes while G was chasing Lambo around the room.

"MY HAIR IS NOT PINK YOU STUPID COW!" G hollered. Giotto sighed and tried to calm his Storm Guardian down. It was something he hadn't had to do in a long while.

* * *

><p>Tsuna and Gokudera were sitting beside each other in a dark room lit only by a gas lamp. Tsuna shifted nervously whereas Gokudera glared at Alaude, who stood across from them. Their hands were still handcuffed together.<p>

"Who are you?" Alaude began. Tsuna gulped, for the question was directed at him. Gokudera was about to protest with Alaude's attitude, but Alaude simply glared. It was scarier than ten-years later Hibari. "I was asking this one, not you."

"I-I am S-Sawada T-Tsunay-yoshi…"

"Now you speak."

"Tch! I am Gokudera Hayato!"

"What were you doing in the mansion?"

"W-We don't know how we got here…"

"That sounds unconvincing."

"It's the truth!"

"_How _did you get in?"

Tsuna frowned in confusion. "We were in the woods and when we walked out, we saw the mansion. We walked through the-the servants' door?"

Alaude frowned. It _was _possible that they got in through the woods, but he had guards posted all around it, so there was actually no way they could have sneaked in without the guards knowing. "How long were you in the woods?"

"A few minutes?" Tsuna was unsure. "Gokudera-kun, how long were you there for?"

"I'd say five minutes. I ran all over looking for you." They looked back at Alaude who was giving them a displeasing look.

"Where are you from?"

"J-Japan…"

"Your clothes don't look familiar," Alaude looked at Gokudera.

"Che! That's because you don't have good taste!" Alaude's eye grew colder.

Tsuna gulped. "A-Ah…h-he's just different like that…" Tsuna said. _Whew! Am I glad Reborn made me wear this or what? I would never be able to come up with an excuse…but only Gokudera would say something so mean… _Alaude noted down mentally everything these two boys said so that he can write it out later and look over it to see if anything was suspicious.

"You also talk differently than the average Japanese man. What are you hiding?" he asked, getting straight to the point. Tsuna's eyes widened drastically and he began to sweat.

_Oh no…s-should I have tried to talk like Basil? No…I'll probably suck at it, and then make myself seem more suspicious…!_

Meanwhile, Gokudera was trying to come up with a retort but found none. _Crap…Juudaime's probably worrying about it right now…I can't let him worry, as his right-hand man!_

"We're not hiding anything!" Gokudera said.

"Liar," Alaude said without hesitation. Gokudera bit his tongue. "I know when someone is lying. _Tell the truth. Now. Or else you will never see that baby again," _he said in an extra scary voice. Gokudera tried to stand from his chair, but it was useless because the chair was nailed to the ground and the handcuffs were tight around his wrist and the chair.

"You wouldn't dare!" Sure, he hated the brat, but what do you expect? They're still _some _sort of family.

Forgetting his Hyper Intuition, Tsuna also struggled free himself. "Leave Lambo alone!"

Alaude narrowed his eyes. Should he take out the tongs? Maybe not. These brats weren't worth it.

"Just don't hurt him! Just…don't hurt Lambo…he's just a kid…" He fretted over the baby who was at the moment happily eating his heart out.

"Will you answer my questions?"

"Yes," Tsuna answered immediately, "as long as you give me your word that you will not harm Lambo!"

Alaude glared. He never gave his word to anyone because once he does, he sticks to it. "Fine. You have my word that I won't harm the baby. Now, tell me: where are you from?" Tsuna looked at Gokudera who looked deflated.

"So we have to tell him…" Tsuna muttered.

"That stupid cow. It's all his fault," Gokudera growled.

"Like I told you before, we are from Japan, although Gokudera-kun was born and raised in Italy." Alaude glanced at the silver haired boy. No wonder his Japanese had an accent.

"Are you in a famiglia?" he asked Gokudera. "Who are your parents?"

"My father is a boss of a famiglia who is in an alliance with the Vongola. My mother... was a mistress," he finished quietly. Alaude narrowed his eyes. A boss having a child with a woman who was not his wife was unheard of, officially. If it happened, it was hushed up in the family. He also noted the past tense he used to refer to his mother and the hate in his eyes he reserved for his father. Then he thought about their current alliances. He shifted through the files of allied families in his head but not a single family matched. He would have known if one of them had such a child. And for him to grow up to be…

"How old are you?"

"Sixteen," they replied.

_Sixteen years…hmph. _"There is no family who is allied with the Vongola who fits your description."

They stared at him. "That's because…we are from the future…about…two hundred years later…?"

Alaude stared at them.

They stared back.

"Pardon?"

"We're from the future, how hard is that to understand?" Gokudera demanded.

Alaude leaned back. Was there a possibility that Talbot's invention _did _work, just a few hours late? _Hn. Then that would mean…_ He looked at Tsuna first, then Gokudera. Tsuna had unruly chocolate brown hair which stuck out at the oddest angles. His eyes were brown and flooded with nervousness.

Gokudera, had straight silver hair to his jaw. His emerald eyes were piercing as if daring Alaude to not believe them. They looked like two people who really annoyed him. It might be possible. Even their attitudes were alike. Except for the brunet. Alaude has _never _seen Primo act that way before. Or maybe it was just because the amount of nervousness was much greater, because he has _definitely_ seen Primo act nervous_. _

"Fight me."

"E-Eh?" Tsuna squeaked.

"If you really are from the future and if you really _are _Primo and his right-hand man's descendants, you will be able to at least show me _some _skill."

Tsuna gulped. "Ah…hahah…I'd rather not…"

"Bring it on!" Gokudera said at the same time, drowning out Tsuna's weak suggestion.

_Oh, no… _was all Tsuna could think. _Not this again._

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I hope you enjoyed the first chapter!

Anyway... you've probably noticed that I'm going with "200 years ago" as being Giotto's time in the past. You can find the explanation on my profile if you're interested in my reasoning.

* * *

><p><strong><em>-LLM<em>**

**_Edited 2015-03-14th_**


	2. And Trouble Follows Them

**Chapter Two**

"EXTREME! WHERE IS THIS?" Ryohei wondered out loud. He had just walked out of a deserted alley that was littered with trash. People in the market place took one look at him and either turned right around for another route or stayed close to the other side of the street. Ryohei looked around in confusion. The buildings were somewhat shabby, only two stories high and the ground was not paved with concrete, but was tightly packed with dirt. Did he just drop into a movie set?

"I WONDER WHERE THE DIRECTOR IS?" He began to jog around all the while shouting, "SAWADA! WHERE ARE YOU?" Since the road was so crowded, he decided to walk with the people instead. After getting used to the odd young man, the people started to act natural again.

When a lady asked whether he wanted to buy a pie, he stared at her blankly. "Oh!" _She__'__s __speaking __in __Italian! __Now __how __do __I __answer __that__…__?_ "No, I'm not hungry TO THE EXTREME!"

The lady frowned and sighed. "They're really good?" _s_he offered. He was about to refuse again when he noticed that she didn't look well. Taking an even closer look, he noticed that her clothing weren't in the best condition. There were a few tears here and there, stained with many blotches.

"YOSH, I'll buy one! I can eat it later!"

She instantly smiled and thanked him so many times and so fast he couldn't understand her. He had trained under Colonnello for at least a year for both Italian lessons physically and mentally. He had passed with flying colours.

_I __wonder __where __everyone __is__…__? _He looked at the pie wrapped in a napkin in his hands. _It __smells __extremely __good! _He sat down on a bench beside a fountain and bit into a slice the kind lady had cut up for him.

"THIS IS EXTREMELY AMAZING!" He screams. The pigeons pecking at crumbs near him _cooed _and flew off to the other side, where they might be safer. A few of the couples around gave him annoyed glares and walked to a quieter, more romantic part of town.

Ryohei finished half the pie in three minutes. _What __should __I __do __now? _There was a whole day to explore this odd place and he decided to look around the strange shops, half remembering to keep his voice low. That was something else Colonnello drilled into his brain. There were times when he needed to be quiet. This was definitely one of them. This was one reason why he was so pumped up when he heard a brawl happening on the next street.

"I'll stop them from fighting _to __the __extreme!__" _He ran towards them, dodging women in dresses with their children hanging on their skirts. In one minute, he reached the fighting area and assessed the situation. Five men were hitting each other at random with no style at all. They walked groggily as if they were only half asleep and they continued to sway slightly. They were in front of a tavern and they had red faces which hinted that they were drunk. Ryohei saw the tavern owner half kneeling under his desk in fear of being targeted for attack.

He jogged up to him and asked, "What's extremely going on?" The tavern keeper looked at him with hope and then with disappointment. He wasn't Master Knuckle.

"They got drunk and had disagreements. Again."

"I'll extremely stop them for you!"

The man was about to protest, saying that a boy of seventeen couldn't beat up five grown men. Ryohei would hear none of it. He ran off to stand in the middle of the fight. The men ignored him and continued to punch each other senseless.

"STOP!"

One fist was aimed at his face and he avoided it. A few more came. Instead of landing on him, they landed on people behind him. They became angry. "Kid, what are you doing? Get outta here before I beat you up!" one with a ginger beard growled.

"I will stop your fight!"

"Shaddup!" The next punch was caught by Ryohei's left hand without much effort on Ryohei's part. He then tossed the man five metres away.

"I told you to stop. You're worrying everyone else!"

The other four obviously didn't learn from their peer because they came at Ryohei all at once, who simply sent them flying towards the groaning man who was getting up. Sadly, he was knocked to the ground a second time. The pile rose until all five were stacked up. Ryohei nodded in satisfaction. The five of them will wake up with purple bruises, but nothing more. And hopefully, they'd learn something from it.

He turned around and came face to face with someone's chest. He looked up, and up, and up and the tall man who looked at him, impressed.

The man was in his late thirties. He was clean shaven with a bald head. He had blue eyes and tanned skin. His face had a few scars which were left behind from many fights. He looked like an extreme opponent.

"You play boxing?"

"YEAH! You're EXTREMELY tall!"

The man let out a low chuckle. "Do you have a place to stay for the day? Any money?"

Ryohei thought for a second, trying to translate the words. He eventually shook his head.

"How would you like to play boxing? You'll have many opponents to face and all of them will be 'll gain a bit of money on the side."

Ryohei grinned and replied immediately. "Take me to the ring!" He followed the man down an alley and stopped in front of a sturdy wooden door. The man looked around cautiously to make sure no one was following him. It was illegal to go into underground boxing tournaments and he couldn't let the Vongola know or else they will close it down. He tapped a coded knock and the door opened. They stepped in and the man who opened it shut it tight.

"Follow me."

The room was dark so they didn't see much. With the help of the air currents, Ryohei could tell that the room wasn't really big and that they were entering a tunnel. After many twists and turns, they arrived at a steel door. The man opened it and they were blasted by the smell of sweat, cigarettes, alcohol, a bit of blood, bad breath, and a _lot _of noise.

"THIS IS EXTREME!" No one paid him any attention—that was how loud the room was. He looked over the occupants' heads and noticed a boxing ring in the centre. Everyone was cheering for their own player and placing bets on both. He saw the two figures who looked tired and beat up by one another, but they continued on. Ryohei was beginning to cheer for both of them, approving their will to fight, when the man who brought him dragged him to the side, through another door.

"What's wrong?" Ryohei asked. "I want to see who wins to the extreme!"

"Don't worry, youngster. You'll have your chance." The door shut and the sounds were muffled. He room was poorly lit and had a musky scent.

"Who do you have here?" The man sitting by the desk asked.

"He beat up five big brawlers single-handed. I thought he would be useful," Ryohei's sponsor said.

"You think that he can handle himself in the ring?"

"I CAN EXTREMELY FIGHT!" Ryohei shouted.

They cringed at the volume. "Alright, alright. Kid, if you don't win the first three rounds, there's no money for you, got it?"

Ryohei nodded, grinning like a fool because he was able to play boxing. But he paused. Where exactly was he? Why was he boxing in such a place? He was given a pair of shorts which looked odd because he's never seen them before. He shrugged and changed into them and walked out of the room.

The two men observed his movements. "Hm…he has good muscles. Maybe he can manage."

Before he knew it, Ryohei was in the ring with a big, white man who was twenty years his senior. He looked around. "Where is the referee?"

His opponent barked out a laugh. "There is no referee here! You're down when you can't get up anymore!"

"But there has to be a referee!" Ryohei protested.

The crowd was getting annoyed. "Get on with it! We're the refs! If you don't get up in the count of ten, you're down! You don't need a referee to tell you that!" Ryohei sort of agreed. But the rules were the rules!

"_Go __on! __Hit __him!__" _

Ryohei dodged the blow and side stepped out of the way. The man tumbled past him unbalanced. He came back around quickly did an uppercut. Again, Ryohei moved away. _He__'__s __slow__…_ Ryohei realised. _He __needs __to __move __extremely __faster __if __he __wants __to __beat __me! _He gave the man a chance to catch his breath before attacking. Not long after that, the man was down and had to be carried away. The same thing happened for the next five. The crowd was shocked and laughing at the men who were defeated by a seventeen year old. Ryohei had a few rest periods which lasted for fifteen minutes. Then he would go back into the ring and play his favourite sport.

He stopped at sundown, saying that he wanted to rest and recharge. The man who brought him, Alfio, agreed immediately.

"Here." He tossed a bag at Ryohei who caught it.

He heard the things inside _shink _against each other. Curiously, he opened the sack which was the size of his palm. His eyes widened when he saw coins. He picked one up and examined it. "Extreme!"

Alfio chuckled. "The smaller bag is filled with more coins—at least thirty of them."

"Extreme! Thank you! CIAO!" _H_e jogged off, receiving a pat or two on the back from people who recognised him. When he reached outside through a secret passage, it was dark. He stuffed the bag of coins into a pocket and kept a few out. He looked for a place that looked like a hotel, or a place where he could stay for the night. Almost every shop was bright and still open, for the night dwellers. Ryohei just grabbed a boy and asked, _"__Where __can __I __find __a __place __to __sleep __for __the __night?__" _He slowed a silver coin and the boy's eyes widened. The little boy in torn up clothes tugged at his sleeve and guided him to a fine looking house. He turned around and smiled up at Ryohei.

"Thanks!" The boy looked at him expectantly. Ryohei cocked his head, wondering what he wanted. "This?" He wondered, holding up a coin. The boy's eyes gleamed. He snatched it. Before Ryohei could say anything, the boy hugged him quickly and stepped back.

"Thank you, mister!" He ran off. Ryohei watched him go. A little girl came out from the shadows and the boy met up with her. He said something and pointed at Ryohei. The two of them smiled wildly and jumped up and down. The teen watched as he older brother, he assumed, bought them a loaf of bread, keeping the few copper change in his pocket and splitting half of the money with his sister. Ryohei smiled. It turned into a yawn.

"Extreme day! I need to rest and eat up!" And so he entered the place and booked a room for the night.

* * *

><p>Hibari was just coming out of his morning nap, wondering why Nami-chuu's bell didn't wake him. He sat up and covered a yawn with a hand.<p>

_"Hibari! Hibari!"_ Hibird chirped and landed on his master's shoulder. Hibari patted the bird and glared at his surroundings. Someone actually _dared _to move him from his precious school to this grassy field? Who dares…?

He stood up and listened. Something was approaching. His pair of tonfa were out in a blink of an eye and he blocked a hit from a…trident?

"Herbivore. What are you doing here?" Hibari growled.

"Kufufu…My, my, look who we have here." Mukuro said. Chrome stood to the side watching them.

"Um…Mukuro-sama…are you going to fight…now?"

"Kufufu…maybe not," he agreed. "First, I would like to know where we are."

Hibari grudgingly put his weapon down, because he, too, wanted to know the answer. But he also wanted to fight…

They were in a forest. Not far from them, was a clearing. They walked towards it, two metres apart from each other. Hibari glared at everything he saw and tried his best to stay away from the pineapple heads.

What they saw made them narrow their eyes: Vongola Mansion.

"So…we're in Italy…" Mukuro mused. Chrome, seeing the beautiful mansion for the first time in her life, was staring in awe. Mukuro laughed at her reaction and tried to shut her mouth. She did so with her face turning red with embarrassment.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi…what are you up to?"

At the name, Hibari realised who must be responsible for taking him half way across the world from his dear and beloved Namimori, Japan. He growled. "I'll bite him to death." He walked to a side door with his pair of tonfa still out. He kicked the door open and Mukuro followed, chuckling all the way. Chrome hoped that nothing would go wrong as she clutched her green bag with her collapsed trident. She touched her pocket and was reassured by the outline of the earrings.

Hibari scanned the bright, decorated corridor.

"Look for the herbivore," he ordered Hibird. Hibird chirped once before flying off, singing the school's anthem in the attempt to lighten his master's mood. Hibari continued walking. He looked at the paintings and entered the rooms. He closed the doors when he found nothing interesting inside. Servants scurried away from the trio quickly. Hibari was used to this because of his strict discipline in Nami-chuu. But why were the servants running away from him, someone they don't even know?

Well, Hibari already came up with the solution that they have time traveled to the future. If these servants recognised him with just a glance, did that mean he had come here often, into this Vongola Mansion—into the crowd of herbivores? His murderous aura flared even more at the thought of his older self crowding with the weak plant eaters.

What he _didn__'__t _know, was that the reason why the servants were avoiding him was because of his similar aura to Alaude, Primo's Cloud Guardian. And following behind him were two unmistakeable hair styles, even though it was just another shade of colour. Perhaps Master Daemon was testing his illusions or something.

A few minutes later, a confused looking Hibird flew to Hibari.

_"Herbivore! Herbivore!"_ He began to fly in tight circles.

"Go," Hibari ordered. Hibird flew off and Hibari charged after.

Mukuro chuckled.

"Mukuro-sama…?"

"Nagi…let's see how your training with transportation is, shall we?"

Chrome nodded. "Hai…" The two of them disappeared into the mist.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Daemon was jolted out of his nap in the carriage. <em>Someone<em>_'__s __using __illusions __back __in __the __mansion__…Nufufufu__… _He should finish this mission soon and return to see what happened.

* * *

><p>Hibird stopped his flight and hovered in front of a set of doors. It chirped once. Hibari didn't hesitate as he barged in. He stopped, though, when he saw who were inside…and he came up with a different conclusion than the one he had before.<p>

"Hibird…" Hibari said. Hibird flew around nervously. "You brought me to the wrong herbivore."

_"Peep?"_ Hibird chirped, confused. Wasn't this the herbivore? He flew to the so called herbivore and rested on his head. He chirped again. Of course this had to the the herbivore!

"But," Hibari said as he lifted the tonfa, grinning evilly. "This will do. I will bite you to death."

* * *

><p>Giotto was instantly surrounded by two of his Guardians, G and Asari. He himself had his gloves on but stayed out of Hyper Mode. He cocked his head. "Alaude? Since when did he have a son?<em> How<em> could he have had a son of his age?!" He said and his eyes rolled up to his head as he tried to get a good look at the adorable little fluff. Hibari's deadly aura strengthened at the mention of Alaude. That matter will come later.

"I will bite you to death." Surely if Sawada Tsunayoshi was improving, his ancestor should be even stronger. He charged. "Get out of my way," he said to G and Asari, who obviously didn't listen to him. They stood firm with their weapons out, assuming that this teen was here to assassinate Giotto. Just a metre away from the first generation Guardians, he was stopped by two hands. His arms were twisted and his path blocked. Giotto, G, and Asari's eyes widened.

"Ahaha…Hibari, should you really be fighting them?" Yamamoto asked lightly. His back was facing Primo, so they didn't see the change of expression.

Hibari glared at him. "Let go, Herbivore."

"No." A drop of sweat rolled down Yamamoto's back as he thought of the consequences of stopping the prefect. G and Asari were thinking, _How __can __such __a __boy __stop __that __that__…__that __scary __Aluade-look-a-like __with __just __his __hands? _Giotto was watching the scene with sharp eyes. Hibari glared harder.

"Herbivore…" Hibari warned. He had to fight…_now._

"Who's there?" Giotto said suddenly. They looked at him.

"Giotto, what are you talking about?" G asked.

"Kufufu…It seems like Primo has discovered our presence, Nagi." Two figures began to appear beside the door. Everyone except Hibari and Giotto jumped in surprise.

G swore. "Who the hell are you? Any why do you look so like Daemon?"

"I am Mukuro Rokudo. And this is Nagi. We are not related to that person," Mukuro said stiffly. Chrome bowed to them.

"Herbivores. Get out of the way." Hibari was itching to fight.

"Ehahaha…uh, how about you fight later?" Yamamoto suggested. "Then, you'll be…well rested and…it will be better?"

"…" Hibari's grip loosened and Yamamoto took that as a yes. Immediately after that, Hibari used a tonfa to hit him over the head. Yamamoto was too surprised with the sudden attack to clear the way, but he managed to avoid a direct attack. He rubbed his head.

"Ow…heheh. I guess I deserved that."

"Never do that again or else I'll bite you to death."

Giotto narrowed his eyes. His Hyper Intuition was telling him that the threatening boy standing before him was not an enemy but he had a hard time believing it because of what his eyes were seeing.

"Hai!" The cheerfulness made Primo and G sweat-drop.

"Exactly who are they?" Giotto asked.

"Oh, I'm Yamamoto Takeshi!" Yamamoto waved at them. He turned to Hibari. "Ah, this is Hibari Kyoya, our school prefect."

Hibird flew from Giotto's head and on Hibari's shoulder. "Where is the herbivore?" Hibari asked. "I will bite him to death for bringing me here."

"Now, now, I'm sure Tsuna doesn't know what's happening as well!" Yamamoto said.

"Tsuna?" G repeated. "You know that brat?"

"Sure we do. He's our friend."

Hibari growled. "I'm no friend of that herbivore."

_He__'__s __just __like a __younger __Alaude, _Giotto thought. _Maybe__…__no, __it _can't _be __possible__…__could __it? He isn't Alaude's son. He's... _Giotto counted. _Tsuna, __Gokudera, __Lambo, __Yamamoto, __Hibari, __Mukuro, __and __Chrome.__There __is __one __more __person __who __should __have __also __come __from __the __future, __if that is what's going on__. __And__…_ he hesitated. Meanwhile, G was arguing with Asari on what they should do with them. Hibari and Mukuro were getting into fighting stances. Yamamoto was at the sidelines, trying to calm them down which made things worse.

_And, _Giotto continued, oblivious to his surroundings, _if __they _are _from __the __future__…__then __they __are living at the time of the__tenth __generation. __As __to __who __is __whose __descendant__… __that __should __be __easy __enough __to __tell... _Yamamoto acted just like Asari when they weren't fighting. But… Giotto shook his head. The boy looked too care free to be a part of the mafia. Although he _did _do that trick with Hibari and all. Gokudera was definitely somehow related to G. Giotto could somewhat see the similarities between Lambo and Lampo. This thought made Giotto positive that they weren't in the mafia, because of the baby. _But, __maybe __he__'__s __just __a __younger __brother __who __hadn't __been __exposed __to __the __mafia __yet. __That __doesn__'__t __mean __he__'__s __not __in __it. __The __same __was __with __G. _G was born into the mafia, while Giotto was just your average boy in town. Or so they thought.

Back to his musing, _Tsuna__…__he __would __definitely __be __my __descendant. __He __looks __like __me, __after __all. __But__…__I __won__'__t __say __that __I __had __such __dramatic __reactions __to __everything. _He thought back to his teenage years and nodded. Yeah, he was _not _like that. And then there was Chrome and Mukuro, who was currently fighting with Hibari—wait what?

"Whoa, stop fighting each other!" Giotto exclaimed. He came in between the two and his head almost got hit.

"Giotto, you idiot!" G yelled. "What are you doing?"

Giotto backed away, wondering what to do with them. "I was trying to stop them. I just didn't think of the outcome."

G sighed. "You never do."

Giotto smiled. "G, we should stop Alaude and Daemon's descendants before they wreck the place."

"Y-Wait. _What?_ Those brats are their descendants?"

"That's the answer I came up with,' Giotto replied calmly.

G crossed his arms. "Hey, you! Yamamoto!"

"Eh?" Yamamoto walked towards them.

"Where are you from?"

"W-What are you talking about? I already told you that I'm from Japan."

"Are you from _this _time?" G pointed to the floor. Yamamoto's eyes widened slightly.

"Uh…" He looked from G to Giotto.

"Oh ho ho!" someone exclaimed cheerfully. The door opened again.

"Talbot."

"Ahaha! It's the man from our time!" Yamamoto laughed, totally blowing his cover.

Talbot had a shocked expression but quickly replaced it with a smug look. "I _knew _my invention worked!"

"Invention?"

"…You were the one who brought me here," Hibari scowled, unfazed by the fact that the man was here. He returned to his mini fight with Mukuro with the thought of biting the man to death after his fight with the illusionist.

"It was a test to see whether I can have people from the future travel back to the past," Talbot explained.

"So…these people are really our descendants?" Giotto asked astonishingly. Talbot nodded.

"No wonder. Oh, shit. That means we'd better stop Alaude before he starts torturing _your _descendant to death!" G couldn't care less for his own. That one was too annoying and loud to do anything good.

The noise in the room instantly quieted.

"What did you just say? Alaude, that's your Cloud Guardian, right? Are you saying that he'll torture Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked quietly and seriously, his bamboo sword not casually slung over a shoulder anymore. Hibari and the mist users also looked at G. They were so shocked by the teenagers' reactions that they themselves didn't know what to say. Yamamoto's serious face was so different than his happy one that it was eerie. Hibari's expression didn't change. It was as blood-thirsty as ever. Mukuro looked more interested, in hearing someone being tortured.

"When they first arrived, we thought they were spies. Alaude suddenly came in and took them to the questioning room, although I'm sure Alaude won't do anything to them," Giotto said quickly, trying to sooth whatever caused this tension.

"Kufufu. Sawada Tsunayoshi is being tortured by someone other than myself, and may be killed in the process? I can't allow that—I still need to possess his body."

_Possess __someone__'__s __body? __Illusionists __can __do __that? _Giotto shivered at the thought. G and Asari must have been thinking of the same thing since they, too, shivered.

Hibari asked, "Where is the room?"

"Uh…basement…third door to your left…?" G said, surprised by the question. Hibari left.

"Where are you going?" Asari asked.

"I will discipline the herbivore who is attacking Nami-chuu students without my permission."

"I'm coming with you!" Hibari was long gone before Yamamoto even reached the door. Mukuro and Chrome had disappeared again.

"What just happened?" Giotto asked.

"They…cared about the kid?" Asari suggested. "I think we should also go. You know how rough Alaude can be with his questioning."

"Oh…Eh? Alaude's hurting my descendant!" Giotto exclaimed before also running out.

"Wha—Giotto, wait!" G and Asari ran after their friend and boss.

* * *

><p>"You can't fight him, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna tried for the hundredth time to convince his friend to not fight, but Gokudera won't take no for an answer. <em>Who <em>_knew __he __was __this __stubborn? _"Please, Gokudera-kun!"

"Juudaime…please believe in me…" Gokudera said. "I have become stronger! I can do this!" The more he spoke the louder he got. Alaude was waiting on the other end of the large underground room. Apparently, there was a hidden door leading to this room from the questioning room.

"Are you ready?" Alaude asked. Gokudera looked at Tsuna pleadingly. The brunet sighed and Gokudera knew he won.

"Just don't go too crazy. We don't know whether this room is stable enough. The roof might collapse and we'll be buried under here." Tsuna began to feel paranoid. What if they blasted a wall? What if this, what if that, _okay, __Tsuna, __calm __down! _He pulled at his hair.

"Don't worry! Please stand back." Gokudera bowed deeply. Tsuna backed up to a corner and crouched to make him as small of a target as he could.

The fight began with Gokudera throwing a few bombs at Alaude.

Alaude used his handcuffs to knock them aside and tripled them. Tsuna rubbed his eyes and looked again. No, there weren't three of them, there were seven! No…nine! Ten! They were at this for fifteen minutes; it was a quick fight. Alaude's eyes flashed when he saw an opening and kicked Gokudera into a wall. Tsuna shot to his feet.

"Gokudera-kun!" He was about to run to his friend.

"Stand back, Juudaime!" Gokudera cried. Alaude scoffed.

"Weaklings. I should have known that a child won't be able to put up a good fight. I'll finish you off for lying about being from the future."

"Wait! He can't even stand anymore!"

The handcuff came down, ready to knock Gokudera unconsicous.

Alaude stopped when he feels a shift in the room…something dangerous. He jumps back as someone takes his place. His eyes widen slightly when he sees who it was. The boy he thought was a weakling was _not _such a weakling after all. He stood up from the floor and faced him. He stood protectively over Gokudera.

"I won't let you hurt my friend," Tsuna said calmly. His forehead bore a Sky Dying Will flame and his hands were gloved with his red gauntlets. His right thigh had a band with a chain attached to his belt. Alaude cocked an eye brow. _Mini __Primo. __With __some __other __additions._

"Fight me." Alaude commanded and attacked Tsuna, who moved away from Gokudera. Tsuna didn't use any of his powerful attacks and only used his martial arts skills. He used the flames to move faster. But it wasn't enough, since no matter how fast he went Alaude was there to find a weak spot. He swung the handcuff at Tsuna who flew into the air. The brunet wasn't there when Hibari battled against Daisy, and Hibari had never used the handcuffs visibly after that, which led to him being kept in the dark as to how the cuffs worked. He only knew that he would be in _deep _trouble if he got caught. Alaude stared at Tsuna who hovered in the air wondering how to convince the Cloud Guardian to stop fighting. Alaude swung his handcuffs up to Tsuna—which amazingly extended the chain in between. Before he knew it, Tsuna's right wrist was caught. Tsuna's breath was taken from him when Alaude pulled him to the ground. He tried to shoot out flames to stop it, but Alaude seemed to be too determined to let a little flame stop him.

"Juudaime…" Gokudera groaned as he tried to lift himself up. He wobbled and fell back to the ground, powerless to help his boss. _Damn. __I __need __to __train __more! __Stupid __for __letting __Juudaime __get __caught __by __a __bastard! _What he happened to forget, was that this man was Alaude, Primo's Cloud Guardian, someone not to be messed with.

Alaude's handcuffs multiplied and wrapped around Tsuna's arm. He wiggled and tried to release himself. _What __is __this? _He thought to himself. Before he knew it, his entire body except his head were in handcuffs. He struggled, but the more he moved, the tighter they got. He winced as his rib cage got squeezed. Anymore, it may crack. Tsuna closed his eyes and the gloves which were hidden from view transformed into Primo's. _Zero __Point __Breakthrough: __Firsts__' __Edition._

The cuffs in the inside froze with a thin layer of ice. The man knew instantly that something was wrong because the cuffs wouldn't tighten when he pulled the chain.

_Not bad for a child._

Tsuna slid out easily. He had been using hard flames and accidentally flew too high. He flipped over so that his legs were what hit the ceiling. It created an echo. Then he flew at Alaude, who was currently dumbfounded. Before Tsuna could land a blow, he and Alaude stiffened.

* * *

><p>"Hibari! Would you wait?" Yamamoto called. He turned the corner and saw Hibari standing outside the third door to his left. He kicked it down and went through without answering.<p>

Mukuro and Chrome appeared. "Kufufufufufu. I have a feeling something fun is happening." He and Chrome followed.

"Where did they go?" Giotto huffed. It was a long run from one part of the mansion to the other. Yamamoto pointed. Giotto and G dropped their jaws.

"W-Who broke the door down?" Asari asked, impressed.

"Hibari did it! Hahaha!"

"H-He kicked down…Alaude's door…most people can't do that…"

"Never mind," Yamamoto said. "We have to see how Tsuna is doing!" he rushed after his "friends".

They arrived to see Hibari still slamming at the door. Mukuro stood to the side chuckling. They were hearing explosions from the other side. Yamamoto was about to offer his help when Giotto stepped up.

"Move," he ordered, worried for the victims inside. Hibari glared at the door and continued to kick it. Primo was about to ask the boy to step aside again when the door flew off its hinges. They went through. The first thing they saw was Gokudera on the floor, glaring at Alaude but unable to do anything. Further in they saw Tsuna standing in front of Alaude. Both looked slightly battered, more on Tsuna's side than Alaude's.

"Alaude! What are you doing?" Giotto exclaimed.

"P-Primo!" Tsuna yelped. He felt someone's presence outside, but he didn't think it was the first generation family. "And H-Hibari-san, Yamamoto, and _Mukuro? _Chrome too? Why are you all here?"

Alaude stared. Where the hell did that person he just fought go?

"Kufufu."

"Boss…I'm glad you're alright."

"Herbivore."

"EE—" He stopped his shriek and finished it in his head. _Reborn__'__s __not __around, i__s __he? _He thought nervously.

"H-Hai, Hibari-san?" he squeaked.

"I'll bite you to death." He ran at Tsuna, his prefect jacket trailing on his shoulders. Tsuna shrieked and ran.

"W-Wait a second, Hibari-san! Why-why do you want to bit me to death?"

"It's your fault I'm here."

"Hiie…No way!"

True, Talbot was the one who brought them there, but if Hibari never accepted that Vongola Ring, he wouldn't have been involved.

"Oi! Hibari! Stop chasing—cough!" Gokudera tried to stand. Tsuna stopped and looked at his friend worriedly.

"Gokudera-kun! You can't move right no—yikes!" He barely dodged the tonfa that came his way. "Hibari-san! Gokudera-kun is hurt right now! Can we finish this some other time?"

"No."

"B-But…but you'll be able to fight Alaude-san in the flesh!" he said quickly. Hibari narrowed his eyes. He turned to the first Cloud Guardian and Tsuna took this opportunity to help Gokudera stay on his feet.

Alaude was slightly annoyed at the boy for using him as a bargaining chip, but he was also impressed that such a coward had the guts to propose such a deal. Hibari grinned, something they don't see every day.

"No," Alaude said before Hibari could even speak. "I've had enough of fighting children for a day."

He walked off. "I want that file by the afternoon," he told Giotto.

"No." Alaude paused and turned around with a plain look on his face. Oh how he hated that word now.

Giotto was screaming at himself and was shaking uncontrollably inside as he said it. _Ah, __stupid __me! __Stupid! __Stupid! __Why __the __heck __did __I __say __that? __Arrggg __Giotto, __you __are __SUCH __an __idiot! _"We need all the Guardians while this goes on. You won't be taking any missions outside of Sicily for a while."

"What…"

"I never ask anything from you," Giotto murmured. "Just this once?"

"That man is already out there doing _his _mission," Alaude retorted.

"Well, he left before all this happened."

"…You owe me."

"Wha—" Giotto looked at the back of his Guardian in dismay.

"At least he's staying," G observed. "And Daemon will be back in a day or two." He noticed Yamamoto and Chrome shift uncomfortably at the mention of Daemon. G narrowed his eyes. _Maybe __they _are _illusions __and __they__'__re __afraid __an __illusionist __will __be __able __to __see __through __them. __But __Talbot, __too? __No__…__Giotto __would __know __as __well__…__he __can __see __through __even __Daemon__'__s __illusions._

"Herbivore…" Hibari said threateningly, turning back to Tsuna.

"Hieeee….t-trust me…Hibari-san…y-you'll get to fight him later!" Tsuna began to back away slowly from the door, supporting Gokudera on one side. "I-I'll e-e-e-ev-ev-even f-f-f-fight y-you when we g-g-get b-b-back to o-our t-time!" He stuttered. "F-f-f-full p-p-power… A-As long as you don't cause any trouble here!" Why the heck did he say that? But it seemed to do the trick.

They left the rooms and walked up the stairs. Gokudera was brought to the infirmary and was told to stay there for the time being until they made sure he was alright. Giotto had someone look for Knuckle.

"Eh?" Tsuna looked around. "Where's Lambo?" They were walking to the dining area.

"Lambo?" Giotto blinked. "Oh, yes, the cow…" Tsuna sweat-dropped. "I don't know."

"W-What do you mean you don't know?"

"I…don't keep track of children, if you know what I mean. I'm not used to looking after him. I must have forgotten about him when Asari told me he found Yamamoto…" He rubbed his temples.

"Oh no! Lambo!" Breakfast forgotten, Tsuna began to run all over the place, looking for the baby.

"Tsuna!" Yamamoto said. Then his stomach gave out a loud rumble.

"Don't worry, this place is very protected. Nothing will happen to the boys," Asari smiled. "I think you should eat something before you faint in the middle of the day. I'll have someone bring food to Gokudera-kun later."

Yamamoto laughed. "Ahaha, sure! Oh, do you have any milk?"

"…Milk?" Giotto repeated from his seat at the head of the table. He and G had already eaten so they were just here to accompany their guests.

"Haha, yeah! Milk keeps your bones strong!"

Margret followed close behind the cook. "Masters…?" They stared in shock at Yamamoto, Mukuro, and Chrome. Hibari had already left somewhere after Giotto pointed him to a room he can stay in.

"Oh," Giotto said. "These are some relatives that came to visit us from Japan. There are a few more around the house, so don't scare them off if you see them," he lied smoothly.

She nodded. "We still have some breakfast…Master Giotto, Master G…"

"We'll just have a drink."

"Yes sir." She left.

"I didn't know so many people here spoke Japanese," Yamamoto commented when no one spoke.

"We thought that you'd feel more welcome if they spoke to you in the language you are used to," Giotto explained.

"Oya? We can all speak Italian fluently," Mukuro smirked. "There is no need to go through that trouble."

Giotto shrugged. "We also need to practice the language."

* * *

><p>Tsuna walked in tiredly and flopped onto the elegant chair to Giotto's left. "I couldn't find him. Hello, Primo, G-san…" He cringed when he noticed the chair he was sitting on. Giotto saw this and chuckled.<p>

"Don't worry, it's not that expensive. They get destroyed by _some _people all the time." He directed a look at G.

"It's not my fault Daemon always picks a fight with Alaude!"

Tsuna frowned at the name and shook the notion out of his head. This was the past and there was nothing he could so. Plus, they cleared everything up in the future. He had forgiven Daemon. They won't be fast friends, but he wouldn't treat the man as an enemy either.

Yamamoto laughed. "Well, he'll show up when he wnats food, ne?"

Tsuna smiled. "You're right."

"I'm…sorry you had to go through that," Giotto said softly.

"Huh?"

"Alaude's fight. I know that he's really tough. I'm surprised you didn't break any bones. I apologise."

"O-Oh, it's alright, Primo…I'm used to it," he muttered under his breath.

Before Giotto could ask, Margaret and a few other servants came back with their food.

"Whaa, it smells so good!" Tsuna beamed at the maid who brought it in. After this morning's adventure, he was ready to eat everything. "Thank you very much!" The maid was shocked by this boy's resemblance to her master.

"Y-You're welcome…"

"Tsuna, they can speak Japanese."

Tsuna's eyes widened. "Eh? Seriously? _Al__l _of them? But if too me _two _years of tort...I mean, learning...to be able to speak Italian! Even now, Reborn's still criticizing my accent! But, I don't think that they speak Japanese that often here," Tsuna said after he swallowed his first bite. "It will be harder for them to understand us, so why don't we speak Italian with them?"

Yamamoto grinned. "That's a good idea!"

Giotto raised an eyebrow. "You're very considerate. That will surely help the staff."

Tsuna reddened. "Erm…thanks…Primo…"

"You were just saying something about torture," G interrupted.

"A-Ah? Did I?" Tsuna nervously pushed his food around his plate. He spoke before putting it in his mouth. "W-Well, eto..." _Telling them that Reborn's a slave driver probably wouldn't be good... _"I have a tutor who is in charge of making every day of my life miserable...so eh...it's torture...yeah, that's it! That's what I meant." Then he accidentally stabbed himself with the fork. "Ite!" _Arg__…__this __is __the __second __time __I __poked __myself __with __a __fork__…_

"Boss…"

"What is it?" He was massaging his hand.

She pointed at the door. "The cow baby you were looking for…"

Tsuna whirled around to see Lambo running through the door. "Lambo!" Tsuna got up to run but tripped over his own feet and fell to the floor painfully. "Ow…ah! Lambo! Where have you been?"

"TSUNA! SAVE ME!" he screamed and jumped into Tsuna's shoulders.

"H-Huh!" Every time Tsuna saw the kid these days, he always had to save him from a variety of situations.

"Get back here, you brat!" Someone hollered from the hall. They waited another heartbeat and Lampo came through.

"Lampo!" Giotto said. "What happened?"

"He took all my sweets!" He pointed an accusing finger at Lambo.

"LAMBO-SAN DIDN'T STEAL THEM! THEY WERE ON THE TABLE!"

They bickered back and forth with Tsuna in the middle. G slammed the table and they flinched.

"BE _QUIET,_YOU TWO! Why do the brats always have to be the loudest?"

"Lambo-san is not a brat!"

"You dare call the great Lampo a brat?!"

Lampo and Lambo screamed at G at the same time. This was also followed by silence. Giotto stifled a laugh and said, "Lampo, you can buy some more tomorrow. You shouldn't treat your descendant like that."

Lampo blinked. "What?"

_Oh __right. __He __doesn__'__t __know __yet. _Giotto explained their case to the confused Lightning Guardian and waited for a reaction.

"I don't want a brat like him being my successor."

"You're stuck with it! Just like how I'm stuck with an annoying kid being mine!" G said. Lampo shut up. He joined them at the table for brunch but stiffened when he saw two pineapple heads.

"Holy mother of god. Why are there two Daemons in the mansion?" He backed away from them. Mukuro glared and Chrome ducked her head.

"Don't relate us to that…_thing,__" _Mukuro replied coolly. Lampo gulped.

Tsuna happened to look up from his food and frown. He counted and counted again.

"Eto…Talbot-san…when you transported us back in time…are all of us supposed to arrive at the same time?"

"Why, yes, you are."

"HIIIEEEE!" Tsuna couldn't keep that in. Giotto jumped in surprise, since this would be his first time hearing it. Tea spilled onto the table. The brunet was horrified.

"What's wrong?" G growled. He had _enough_ of this. It wasn't even noon and he was feeling a migraine.

"Onii-san isn't here!" he said worriedly.

"You're brother?" Giotto asked.

"N…no…he's not really my brother, but he's like one. We're not blood related." Giotto understood that much. " He's not here yet? Where could he be?"

"Maa, maa, Tsuna! Senpai will do fine by himself!"

"Y-you're right…but…"

"We'll get some people to look for him when they go to the market tomorrow," Giotto suggested.

Tsuna sighed with relief. "Thank you, Primo."

"Call me Giotto. I'm getting tired of people calling me Primo when they are my relatives."

"R-Relative?" Tsuna squeaked.

"You _are _somehow related to him," G said. "If you aren't, there's no way you would look so alike, and there's no way you could have travelled back in time otherwise."

_No __way__… __Reborn __will __probably __kill __me __for __calling __my __ancestor __by __his first __name__… _Tsuna thought.

After finishing their meal, Giotto suggested for them to go to his study to discuss their problem.

"Yes…let's go, shall we?" Talbot said. He shifted uneasily for some reason and both bosses caught on immediately.

"Is something wrong, Talbot?" Giotto questioned.

"No, nothing as of yet. Come, let us leave this place for your study!"

"Ah…I'll be there in a moment," Tsuna said. He walked out another door, where he saw the maid go through. Giotto shrugged and trusted his descendant to know what he was doing, and to ask someone where his study was.

"Eh, excuse me?" Tsuna poked his head into the kitchen shyly. The cook took one look at him and dropped the pan he was scrubbing.

"P-Primo!"

"Um, sorry… I'm not Primo," Tsuna replies with a smile. He walks in to show his full body. "I'm one of the relatives who are visiting him for a while. I just have a favour I would like to ask."

"Yes, yes! What is it?" He looked eager to help.

"One of my friends, she doesn't eat much in front of strangers. She's shy that way. Please leave her some food in the room she's staying in?"

"Yes, of course, sir. I'll get someone to do that!"

"Thank you!" Tsuna smiled and ran off. He stopped at the stairs. _Where __is __Primo__'__s __study?_Tsuna slowly walked up the stairs to look for it, getting hopelessly lost.

* * *

><p>"What's taking that kid so long?" G grumbled. They've been waiting for an entire hour. Mukuro had gotten bored long before then and had disappeared. Chrome sat on the opposite end of the couch from Yamamoto.<p>

Hibari appeared some time ago and was leaning against a wall, glaring at Alaude who was leaning against Giotto's wide, long, desk, stacked with paperwork. The only thing that stopped him from fighting was the herbivore's promise of a good fight. Yes, he'd admit it: that herbivore was _okay. _He can put up a good fight. So, he'll wait it out…as long as there's a good fight. But seeing such a carnivore in front of him…he was itching to fight. He sent another glare at Alaude who ignored him.

"Perhaps Boss got lost," Chrome whispered.

"Why do you call him boss?" Asari asked curiously. He still didn't think that they were part of the mafia, so they didn't say anything about _them _being part of the mafia—although calling someone boss is unusual and he couldn't help but think of the worst possibilities.

Chrome looked up innocently. "Because he's my boss."

Yamamoto grinned. "It's this game we're playing!" he said, even though he knew it was no game.

G snorted. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Giotto called.

"Oh…sorry for being so late!" Tsuna says. "I got lost!"

"Didn't you ask someone to lead you here?" Lampo groaned out of boredom.

Tsuna reddened. "No…"

"Alright, let us discuss this…time travelling madness…" Giotto muttered under his breath. Tsuna took the seat between Yamamoto and Chrome.

Talbot cleared his throat. "Well, yes. About that," he said. "I am very pleased that this has worked out nicely, but I am afraid there is a slight problem. The—ah…machine has broken down."

"Ehh! Not this again!"

"Again?" G asked suspiciously.

"N-Never mind!"

"Talbot, is there any way of fixing it?" Giotto asked.

"Yes, there is a way, of course. I just have to find it." Suddenly, they felt a very dangerous aura flow into the room. Giotto's head snapped up. A tall man dressed in a black suit leaned against the door frame. His eyes narrowed. Who was this man, and how did he get in? His fedora hat hid his expression and a green chameleon rested on his shoulder. He was about to warn the others to be wary when the brunet of all people, stood up to face him.

"Reborn! Where were you all this time?"

"I was gathering information." The voice was deep and smooth. It was the voice of a person who controlled himself well and accepted no nonsense. "Dame-Tsuna, I hope you didn't cause too much trouble for Primo and his Guardians." The hat came up and black eyes stared into Tsuna's warm ones.

"Um…" The eyes narrowed. In a flash, Reborn was in the room next to Tsuna who was sprawled on the floor. "Agh…" Tsuna groaned painfully. Giotto sat in shock. He didn't even see the man move! This is bad! What was even more surprising was that his weak looking descendant bounced right back up.

"What was that for, Reborn?" he complained.

"By coming here, we have already disrupted the flow of history," Reborn said. Tsuna gulped again and sat, rubbing his stomach. Reborn looked at Giotto, who composed himself. Reborn nodded slightly and Tsuna's eyes popped out. "Primo, I'm sorry that my student has caused such a chaos in your presence."

"Uh-Um…it's fine…Reborn, is it? Are you also from the future?"

"Yes, I am the world's top assassin who serves under Vongola Nono."

_He __looks __like __one, _G and Lampo thought. This man might as well be the best hitman in the world…

Alaude was slightly more interested in this man and wanted to fight him…which made Hibari smirk. Why? Because the first thing he did when the Arcobalenos' curse was released, was attack Reborn. Sure, he…"forfeited", but it was a good fight. He couldn't wait until the next time they fought.

Lampo suddenly had a clear thought. "Talbot, didn't you say that eight was the limit for time travelling? These children and a boy named Ryohei are already eight! This man—er…Reborn…is the ninth person!"

Talbot paled. "Oh, I see…so that's why the time machine broke down. A ninth person was forcefully drawn into the paradox. But that shouldn't have happened! They'd have to be stuck to each other like glue!"

Tsuna groaned at the memory of that bullet Giannini invented and Reborn hit his student with the Leon Hammer, since Giannini wasn't around to be punished.

"Damn you inventors and your inventions," Reborn said dangerously.

Lampo gulped and shrunk into the seat he was sitting in. There was a knock on the door and it opened.

"Hello, everyone!" Knuckle greeted. He wore his preaching clothes, and had a piece of tape on his nose even though he was no longer a boxer. It was to remind him of his mistakes.

"Knuckle," Giotto was relieved. "How is Gokudera?"

"He will do fine, to the limit!" Tsuna's eyebrow twitched, but he calmed down after hearing that his Storm Guardian was alright. "But why does he look so much like G?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-15th**_


	3. Meal Time

**Chapter Three**

Ryohei awoke from his bed six in the morning, thinking to run around Namimori three times before going to school. He sat up. "_EXTREME!" _He shouted at the empty room. He got up and went to his closet. "Huh? Where are my clothes?" He wondered out loud. He opened the bedroom door and was even more confused when he saw a dark corridor with creaking floorboards. "Where am I?" Then he remembered the events that happened yesterday. "Oh! I'm in a movie!"

"Sir, why are you up at such an early hour?" his host asked.

"I always wake up at this time! It's extremely healthy!"

She smiled. "It's rare to see a boy who is excited to get the day going. Oh, here is some clothing for you. The ones you wore yesterday looked tattered and dirty so I had them washed."

"Thank you!" he said and accepted the clothing she held in her hands. Remembering what happened yesterday with the boy he took out a coin and offered it to her. She frowned at shook her head. Ryohei told her what happened with the boy last night.

"Ah, yes, it is kind to repay ones who have helped you, especially when they are using the time they should be scourging for food. But your rent covers the cost of these clothes, so I bought the best I could." She smiled gently.

She motioned him to be quiet and told him breakfast would be ready in an hour. He went in to change and put the bag of money in a pocket inside the coat. He was wearing a simple white dress shirt and brown pants, which looked funny on the boxer who was used to no such thing. The coat was second-hand, black, and reached to his thighs.

"Alright! Time for my morning jog!"

He waved at the people who opened their doors to complain and ran down the stairs.

"I'm going for a run before eating!" he said before going out. Off he went, to jog around this interesting town a couple times. He stopped in front of a church he had passed by twice before. He was curious to hear what they were singing, so he entered the church. He was mesmerised by the sounds of the singing so much, he didn't notice someone gently pushing him towards a chair and giving him a sheet of paper. He had no idea how long he stood there with the rest of the group, but when the song finished, it was as if he was released from a spell.

_EXTREME! _He thought, knowing deep down that he shouldn't shout in this place. The paper had elegant handwriting on it. He realised that they were lyrics to the song as well as music notes, after scrunching his eyes trying to read. Although he can _speak _Italian, there was the never-ending problem of getting him to sit still and learn how to read or write. He turned to the one who have him the paper.

"Thanks!"

"May God bless those who appreciate as much as you have," he said. He was dressed in a robe Ryohei had never seen before.

"What's going on here?" The man—a priest—explained the on goings of a church and waited for Ryohei reaction. "I don't understand."

"You—er…" The priest was pretty sure that he explained in the simplest terms, so why couldn't this teen understand?

He sighed and looked at Ryohei's clothes, which was covered with muck after his morning training. "You need some additional clothing, young man. It's not warm enough outside for what you're wearing. Come, I'll lend you some."

Ryohei tried to understand what the man was saying. After some gesturing on the priest's part, he understood.

He walked out dressed in a clean shirt with a robe draped over him, holding his other clothes in his hands. He walked down the street humming and stopped when he heard someone mention the Vongola. He walked up to the group.

"The Vongola?"

"You don't know the Vongola?" One asked. Ryohei shrugged. "They are a famiglia that protects us from harm! Their leader, Giotto, is a good man!"

_Giotto…hm. OH! THAT'S VONGOLA'S FOUNDER! _Ryohei remembers. _But why are they mentioned?_

"Are they here?" Ryohei asked. The men laughed.

"No, of course not! He only comes to town once a week. He's probably in his mansion over there." Another man waved a hand aimlessly towards a large mansion.

_Maybe I'll go see him! _Ryohei said and walked off._ He could explain why I'm on a movie set. _

He arrived at the mansion after a quick run of fifteen minutes and stopped at the large gates.

"Extreme!" The guards watched the youth and their eyes widened. A smaller door opened and they waited for Ryohei to enter. The boxer was confused, but obliged. Maybe they wanted him for a boxing match?

"Master Knuckle! We're deeply sorry! We thought you were inside! If we knew you had gone out, we would have left the door open." the man began to babble an apology which Ryohei only half understood. Then his stomach reminded him that he didn't eat anything after his morning run. He followed his nose to the kitchen, which was brewing something good and tasty.

"THAT SMELLS GOOD TO THE EXTREME!"

The guard blinked and looked at the back of the teenage who he just allowed onto Vongola property. Come to think about it…didn't Knuckle just bid him good morning a while ago? If so…who was that? He shook off the ugly thoughts of an intruder who looked so much like the kind and caring man. Nah, it _has _to be him. There was no one else who would dress up like the man and have the same face.

Ryohei halted when he reaches the front door and sniffed. Instead of going through that door, he turned left and started walking to the far end of the mansion. He was startled to find ingredients scattered all over a table and people hurrying here and there. He watched through the netted doorway in awe.

"They are so hard working! I should ask them whether they want to join the boxing club!" With that thought in mind, he marched up to them. One errand boy noticed him and smiled.

"Good morning, Master Knuckle! What brings you here in the morning? Breakfast will be prepared in a bit." Again, Ryohei heard himself being addressed the name of Vongola Primo's Sun guardian. He didn't exactly have a chance to answer because the cook shoved something in his face: a plate with a single tart fresh from the oven.

"Master Knuckle! C-Could you please, try this? It is my first time baking it and I want your honest opinion on how it taste!" Ryohei absentmindedly took the white plate and stared at it. The cook shifted nervously. The tart was like any other tart. The only difference was that it looked much _much _more delicious. He plucked it from the plate with a hand. There was a small piece of a strawberry resting in the middle with a light, pink colour filling it.

"It's pink!" Ryohei said.

"I also have other flavours! There's grape, strawberry—that's the one you have now—orange, uh, lime, blueberries and lemon."

"Huh…" Ryohei took a curious bite out of it and he felt like he was in heaven.

"THIS TASTES DELICIOUS TO THE EXTREME!" Ryohei screamed in surprise. The cook was _extremely _overjoyed and so were his staff.

* * *

><p>"Come in," Giotto said when he heard a knock at his door. He had just finished getting dressed. He raises his eyebrows in surprise and questioning at the guest.<p>

"Daemon, you're back. That's quick."

"Nufufu. I had a feeling that I should come back. I felt someone using Mist Flames while I was gone."

"You're sharp," Giotto commented.

"So are you going to tell me what happened?"

Giotto gave his Guardian an unguarded smile. "You'll find out soon enough. I think it's best if the other Guardians are also there when I explain what happened. How did the mission go?"

"It went very well, like always. Oh, and this is the report and receipt from all the places I've been to."

"Thanks—Daemon…"

"Yes?" He smiled sweetly.

Giotto had the _long _piece of paper in his hand, filled from top to bottom with written sums of money he had a headache from counting. All were somehow related to property damage or exquisite restaurants.

"You were only gone for…a day." Giotto shakily put the paper down, barely able to contain his anger. He picked up other smaller sheets of papers. These were more detailed descriptions of what happened within twenty four hours. Each one was for a different cause and there were hundreds of them. He rubbed his temples.

"And…?" Daemon pondered. Giotto let the papers slip out of his hand and onto the desk. He slowly made his way to Daemon, hands twitching.

**!#$%^&*!#$%^&***

He was tossed out Giotto's door minutes later, with any valuable accessories he had on stripped away with the hands of an expert pickpocket—and many bruises.

* * *

><p>Tsuna woke with a start. Was he imagining it? He leaped out of bed two hours early and fell to the carpeted floor, which was a feat no one other than him could possibly think of doing, considering the fact that he was on a king sized bed.<p>

"Ow… that hurt…" He had a luxurious room one floor below the first generation Guardians' rooms, facing the side of the mansion. That was fine with him and his Guardians. Gokudera claimed that he will be much less of a target. The first generation was still confused as to why Gokudera demanded that Tsuna must have this room. They had yet to come to the conclusion that this boy was his dear, beloved boss; it seemed too farfetched to be possible.

"Onii-san?" Tsuna muttered, and shook his head. "He wouldn't actually be…_here, _would he? How did he find the Vongola Mansion?"

He called himself an idiot as he got changed. Of course there was a chance that Ryohei would find such a famous place. But how would he get in? And that shout sounded too far to be from within the property line. Staying in the boxer's company for three years had taught Tsuna to listen for the echoes and volume of each shout corresponding to the time of day. That shout he just heard told him that Ryohei was _not _in the Vongola Mansion. And the way it traveled told him that he was running; a morning run perhaps? Tsuna chuckled inwardly. _Sure, that's possible. It's just like Onii-san to not skip his run even if he was abducted to some alien planet. If he's in town…it should be really easy to find him later on._

He stopped his thinking when he touched the door handle. Why…why was he up so early? His answer came on the other side of the door. It flew open and hit his nose painfully. A fully dressed Reborn walked in with Leon on his shoulder, as always.

"R-Reborn! Y-You're earlier than usual!" Tsuna exclaimed. Ah. Reborn looked disappointed.

"And here I thought that I could have the honour of waking you up."

"Hiiee…" _More like beat me up!_

"Anyways—since you're up, do ten laps around Vongola Mansion. Tsuna stared at his tutor.

"Huh?" _Ten laps around this humongous mansion? Is Reborn…crazy?_

"Ten laps around the mansion. Now." Leon turned into a gun. Tsuna bolted out the door, running down the steps not even thinking. Half ways there, something pulled him back.

"Gaaaa!" Looking at his waist, he saw a lime green, slimy bungee cord. He turned around and saw Reborn holding the other end, waiting patiently for Leon to retrieve his sorry excuse of a student.

"Dame-Tsuna, I told you, _around _Vongola Mansion, ten times. Do you have hearing problems?"

"H-Hah?"

Reborn pulled them into the room and shut the door. They approached the window and Tsuna began to have a bad feeling about what Reborn was planning. Reborn opened the large window to its limit. Tsuna took a glance at the ground. He had spent so many fights in the air he was no longer afraid of heights—in Hyper Mode, that is. The last time he checked, he was still normal Tsuna: _not _the one who can fly.

"I-I don't think so…uh…Reborn…"

"Oh, yes I do." Tsuna was picked up by the collar of his shirt and hurled outside the fourth story window.

"HIIIIIEEEEEEE!"

Reborn narrowed his eyes. "Make it twenty laps." Tsuna sucked in his breath and held onto the ledge for dear life. Thank god he slept with his gloves and rings nowadays. He remembered stuffing the gloves into an inside pocket after changing his clothes this morning with the rings on his fingers.

"No way!"

"Get moving! Finish by breakfast or else you're facing another ten." Reborn closed the window and locked it. "Oh," his muffled voce said. "If you get help from _anyone, _there will be more training ahead of you. Don't think that you'll be relaxed here. Don't forget you are staying at a mafia family's mansion which means there may be enemies lurking about. And don't forget…" Reborn's voice became dangerous. "You still have to complete your etiquette training." Tsuna knew it was pointless to plead with the hitman so he began to cautiously make his way across the building.

"Don't stray from the fourth floor. Go higher if you want but if I see a single Tsuna-related article touch the third floor, you're in for it." Reborn left Tsuna's room and headed to wherever he spends his free time. Most likely to the yard to observe Tsuna's training.

Tsuna sighed as he testing his footing. He _knew _there was something wrong with Reborn's first command. His tutor _never _told him to only run ten laps. That was too little! But no, he had accepted it quickly, thinking his tutor was being soft and considerate. By now he should know that those words weren't in Reborn's dictionary.

In fifteen minutes, Tsuna had passed three rooms which belonged to his Guardians: Chrome, Mukuro, and Lambo. Chrome was fast asleep when he passed by, the curtains not allowing a single ray of sunlight to enter. Tsuna worried over her and almost lost his footing. He squeaked.

"Oya? Who do we have here? Kufufu…a peeping tom, perhaps…"

"M-Mukuro!" Tsuna shivered and then realised what he said. "NO! I'm not a perv!"

"Then why are you climbing so close to Nagi's room?" Mukuro was sitting on the ledge of his window comfortably, unlike Tsuna who could be blown away by a strong gust of wind.

"Reborn's making me climb around the mansion before giving me food to eat," he said. "I'm not trying to do anything to Chrome!"

Mukuro's eyes shifted to the ground when a shot rang out.

"Dame-Tsuna, move it. You don't have time to talk with your Guardians."

"Please refrain from calling me that," Mukuro said. "Tsunayoshi, I will believe you this once. Get away from that window right now if you don't want to become mentally challenged for the rest of your life. Kufufu… and don't break that body of yours, which I will soon possess." The window closed shut and Tsuna moved as fast as possible without falling.

He had no problems with Lambo, since he was still asleep but Reborn's gun reminded him that he should _get moving, _as Reborn put it. Then he stopped at the corner, wondering how to proceed. He frowned uncertainly at the corner. He put a careful foot on it and found that it was slippery.

"Ahh! Good thing I didn't put my whole weight there…" He craned his neck to look and found deep foot holes and hand holes. His right arm reached as far as it could go. His right foot planted itself firmly until it was partially stuck. Tsuna took in a deep breath and swings the rest of him across with a yell. After a moment he opens his eyes, surprised to see that he was still holding on. He lets out a quiet laugh in relief.

BAM!

"Hiiiee!"

"You're barely half way," Reborn informed him.

"I know, I know!"

He past the front, where there was a balcony connected to one of the ballrooms.

"Don't even think about walking across that balcony," Reborn warned. "You have to climb through the outside."

Tsuna groaned. He held onto the wide, white ledge and continued on his way. His legs and stomach were beginning to cramp up from the exercise. After half an hour he was back against the wall. He past by a large decorative window. He saw a shadow move as he shimmied across. _How can a mansion have so many foot holes? _Tsuna asked subconsciously, thinking about strategies without meaning to. It just happened naturally. After all, why _wouldn't he _think like that after everything he's been through? _Anyone can just climb up and sneak in through a window like what I'm doing right now. _He was a foot away from Primo's window when it burst open.

"What are you doing?" Giotto exclaimed with an anxious look in his eyes.

"Eh?" Tsuna said dumbly. He was concentrating so hard he couldn't make out full sentences.

"Get back in here. That's dangerous! You might fall!" Giotto stretched his hand. Tsuna looked down at Reborn who observed this.

Tsuna shook his head quickly with fear. "I can't do that, Primo." _Reborn will kill me if I go in… and probably beat up Primo for helping me._

"Don't be stupid!"

"It's too late, Primo!" Tsuna cried. _Once Reborn starts his training, it won't stop until I succeed or break all the bones in my body! _Tsuna wailed in his mind.

"It's never too late! Come on! We'll talk things over!" Giotto was yelling now, scared for the brunet's life. Tsuna blinked. Why did that sound so much like what people said to Yamamoto when he was about to jump down the school roof? Tsuna stared at Giotto….and blinked thrice more. Then he remembered what he and Giotto just conversed.

…Afraid I can't go back in…

Don't be stupid…

It's too late…

We'll talk things over…

"EH?" Tsuna screamed in shock. His eyes popped out. "Y-YOU THINK I'M SUICIDAL? I'm not trying to kill myself! Why would you think that?"

"What—well—you're on the wall looking so lost!" Giotto bristled. "No sane person would climb up a mansion five stories high for fun!"

"I'm not doing this for fun!" Tsuna whined. "Five…?" He counted. _What! When did I move up a floor? _He thought. _I'd better go back to the fourth floor after this…_

"Get in here!"

"I'm not trying to commit suicide! Reborn's making me do this!"

Giotto stared at the boy. "_Who?"_

"Reborn, my tutor? He's making me climb twenty rounds around the Vongola Mansion!" Giotto looked down and spied Reborn looking up at them, his hands crossed and gun ready to shoot. Giotto felt a shiver go down his spine.

"Why is he making you do this? It's…well, suicidal…"

"He's calling it training," Tsuna muttered bitterly. "More like torture." Giotto nodded his head slowly and looked at Tsuna and then the ground.

"This _is _training, of some sort…" He muttered to himself, thinking back to the time when he climbed a cliff for six months to master his technique. But why would Tsuna have to do this type of training? Something nagged in his mind that there was something about the boy that he doesn't know yet.

BAM!

Tsuna shrieked and moved his head over to the the left. Where it was two seconds ago, was a hole in the brick wall. Giotto raised his eyebrows, impressed with his descendant's skills of dodging bullets.

"Okay, if you're done talking, proceed before I give Lambo your breakfast," Reborn called up.

"Hiiiee!" Tsuna exclaimed. He looked at Primo. "Um…I'll be going now! And good morning!" Tsuna shuffled off, falling a bit now and then. Giotto flinched at every movement which seemed deadly.

"Primo," Reborn said. "Would you like to join this training?"

Giotto shook his head. "No thanks…" He said and shut the window firmly and closed the curtains. Tsuna's heart sank at the betrayal he felt. He'd have to continue on alone…

Half hour later, he arrived at the other side of the mansion. He sighed and rested his arms which were shaking. He looked down to find Reborn still watching with a smirk. He could practically feel the evilness coming from Reborn from his height.

Tsuna realised that he was in front of Gokudera's window. He hoped that his Storm Guardian won't notice him because if he did, he would surely make a big fuss out of it.

* * *

><p>Gokudera was reading by his window with his glasses on and hair tied back. Then a shadow past by the history book written in Italian. He scowled and was about to shoo the bird away when he saw brown hair and a chin.<p>

"Juudaime!" He cried. Tsuna, who was looking for the next hand hold, was surprised by the yell.

"G-Gokudera-kun!"

"Juudaime, what's going on?" He moved to open the window for his sweat soaked boss. He had a horrified expression on his face.

"Don't open the window, Gokudera-kun! I'll fall!" Gokudera reluctantly obeyed since he saw the sense in what his boss was saying. Tsuna told him what was going on and Gokudera started to bang his head against the wall.

"I can't believe it! Juudaime is doing this all by himself! I must join him, as his right-hand man!" Tsuna had moved away from the window and almost jumped out of his skin with surprise when it opened. Gokudera had a foot on the ledge.

"Juudaime! I'LL JOIN YOU!"

BAM!

"Gokudera, if you join Tsuna, he will fail his training!" Gokudera looked at Reborn. _Why did you ask Primo to join me then? _Tsuna thought.

"Reborn-san…Please? I can't let Juudaime suffer all alone!"

Reborn smirked. "Now _that's _something a right-hand man should say. But this training is for bosses only. Get back inside."

Gokudera gave them an understanding face. _Don't tell me you believe him! _Tsuna thought.

"Juudaime! Do your best!" Tsuna could see a shade of worry behind the glistening, proud emerald green eyes.

"I'll see you at breakfast, Gokudera-kun!" He said reassuringly.

"Hai…Juudaime…" After a minute, Gokudera slapped his head. "I'm such an idiot!" He got changed and ran out in thirty seconds flat. "I can support Juudaime by cheering him on from the ground!" He opened his door. Yamamoto was just finishing his kendo practice and was exiting his room to find something to eat.

"Yo, Gokudera! What'cha doing?" he asked cheerfully, waving Shigure Kintoki. Gokudera paused. Then he walked up to the baseball player and dragged him by the collar down the elegant marble staircase.

"COME ON!"

"Whoaa! Where're we going?" Yamamoto asked. He ran at full speed with Yamamoto right behind him.

"Juudaime is training and we need to cheer him on!"

Yamamoto brightened. "Cool! Let's call everyone else as well!" They passed by Hibari's room. He refused to stay on the same floor with so many herbivores, so he occupied the entire third floor. Even the servants were too afraid to go _near _it. Yamamoto cupped a hand to his mouth. He took in a deep breath. Gokudera skidded to a halt when he noticed that Yamamoto wasn't behind him. He looked towards the teen, then at his actions, then at hell—_ahem_—the hall. He ran back and tried to cover his mouth before it was too late.

"No!"

"HIBARI!" Yamamoto cried out in a sing-song voice. "WE'RE CHEERING TSUNA ON WITH HIS TRAINING! DO YOU WANT TO JOIN US?" A door opened and a tonfa flew their way. The two of them ducked and the tonfa lodged itself in the opposite side of the mansion. In between where Gokudera stood and the wall across, there was a big empty space where you could look down to the main floor. It was about twenty metres in diameter.

"Wow, he must be mad," Yamamoto chuckled. "I'll take that as a no."

Hibird began to sing the school's anthem. They waited for Hibari to come out but he didn't. They did however, feel the killing intent coming from the room, stronger than before.

"Baseball freak, you're an idiot! We could have been bitten to death, you know!" He raised a fist at Yamamoto who raised his arms in front of him defensively and sheepishly.

"Opps! Hahah! But we're fine now, ne?"

Gokudera growled. "I'm going to Juudaime! Stay here if you like." He ran off. Yamamoto picked himself off the ground and chased after the dynamite guy.

* * *

><p>Tsuna was currently complaining nonstop about his current situation. He had reached the back of the mansion and all that was left was to turn over to the far end. But the problem was that the wall was smooth. <em>Too <em>smooth—not a single bump within reaching distance.

"I can't believe Reborn did this to me—okay, actually I _can _believe it, but why must I do it _now? _Geez!" For the record, he began calling Reborn many ungrateful names under his breath which was definitely not a good idea because being Reborn, he heard his student's rants. He allowed the first one to pass. That was considered a handicap. When the rants continued, Reborn turned Leon into a sling and chose a nicely shaped rock to hurl at Tsuna. It knocked against his neck, making him twitch uncontrollably. It took all his strength to stay on the wall.

"_THIS TASTES DELICIOUS TO THE EXTREME!"_

"AAAAAAHH!" Tsuna lost his footing and tumbled to earth. He managed to flip himself so that he didn't hit his head but that was all he managed to do before falling with a painful smack on a tree.

"_Ite_—ah—ie—oo!" He yelped as he broke through branches and finally, landed on the grass. "_Itai_…"

When the cook saw Tsuna falling to the ground, the first thing he did was cry in shock and drop the tarts. Ryohei's eyes widened. "Is that a new sport?" They watched him fall and the cook winced at every snapped branch they heard.

"I-I'll find a medic!"

"OH, THERE'S NO NEED! HE'S DOING THAT FOR FUN!" Ryohei exclaimed. The cook sweat-dropped. "TRUST ME TO THE EXTREME."

"O-Okay…"

"SAWADA! I FINALLY FOUND YOU!" Ryohei shouted.

"O-Onii-san!" Tsuna blinked up at the boxer who was grinning from ear to ear. "You're here!" His pain forgotten, he sat up.

"YEAH! Sawada, where is this place? Everyone is speaking Italian!"

"Uh…Onii-san…we're in the past. We time travelled to Vongola Primo's time."

SILENCE.

"What do you mean?"

Tsuna sagged. He should have known that he won't be able to explain it to him so easily. "AAH!" His body ached all over from his four story fall and he fainted.

Reborn tsked. "He still has a lot to learn."

"It's you!" Reborn looked at Ryohei who was currently holding Tsuna over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Ryohei, bring him to a room and fix him up. Tell him we'll continue with this training later. I'm hungry. _Ciao_."

"YOSH!" With that, the two departed to go their separate ways. Ryohei carried Tsuna back into the mansion just as Gokudera and Yamamoto ran out a corridor out of breath.

"Who knew that this place was so big?" Yamamoto laughed. Gokudera glared and stalked up to Ryohei.

"TURF-TOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH JUUDAIME? WHY THE HELL IS HE UNCONSCIOUS?" He grabbed Ryohei's front collar—er…robe?

"What are you _wearing?" _Gokudera asked, clearly puzzled.

"OH! OCTOPUS-HEAD IS HERE TOO! Where is this place?"

"Ahaha! Senpai, you're in the past!" Ryohei frowned as he readjusted his hold on Tsuna so that he won't fall. "You know, like how we travelled to the future? We just came to the past instead!"

"I EXTREMELY DON'T GET IT!"

"What happened to Juudaime?" Gokudera repeated his anxious question.

"He fell down!"

Gokudera's eyes widened. "Juudaime! We'll save you!" He snatched his boss from Ryohei and ran for the infirmary.

"Wait up!" Ryohei said, slightly annoyed. He and Yamamoto chased after Gokudera. They found him laying Tsuna on a pallet.

"Hurry up, Turf-Top!" Gokudera scowled, scaring all the help while making them blush like mad.

"I think he's fine!" Ryohei retorted as he sat on the chair by Tsuna. "There aren't any broken bones…no sprains…he has a few cuts and bruises! That is _extremely _lucky for one who fell four floors!" Ryohei shouted and went into the process of healing their boss and friend. The servants remembered where they were and told them to lower their voices.

"Ahaha…sorry!" Yamamoto grinned.

"Ugh…" Tsuna moaned. He opened his eyes and saw four of his friends surrounding him. "Where am I?"

"Juudaime!" His head turned to Gokudera who was already banging his head on the floor.

"HIIEEE! Gokudera-kun! Stop that!" Tsuna exclaimed. He put his feet on the floor and brought Gokudera back up.

"Juudaime! I'm terribly sorry! I let you get hurt! If only I got there earlier I would have caught you!"

"I-I'm fine, Gokudera-kun…" _H-He's so intense…_

"E-Excuse me for my intrusion…young masters…" They turned to see Margaret at the doorway. "Breakfast is ready and Master Primo was wondering where you all were…young masters Kyoya, Mukuro, and the lady Chrome are already at the table."

"Ehhhh! Hibari-san is at the table?" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Yes, but he requested to sit as far away from the others as possible…"

"Che. Why is he there anyways?" Gokudera asked.

"Primo requested that everyone eats breakfast together…when young master Kyoya refused…Primo went to his room and," she gulped. "H-He managed to get young master Kyoya to follow him to the table…but he was really scary. Oh! Please don't tell him I said that!"_ s_he cried fearfully.

Tsuna was empathetic to her fear. "W-We won't…thank you for telling us…" She bowed slightly and left. "We should go then," Tsuna said. He was beginning to get hungry from that morning torture. _How did Primo manage to get Hibari-san out of his room…and…and to _crowd _with herbivores?_

"Hai, Juudaime! Please be careful!" Gokudera stood beside Tsuna, ready to help when needed.

"I'm okay, Gokudera-kun…"

They walked down the hall and turned left. They continued to turn here and there until they reached the dining hall. Good thing Gokudera already explored most parts of the mansion or else they would have been lost. They were all there, waiting for them.

"Oh, you finally arrived," G said grimly. "Hurry up. We're getting hungry."

Gokudera growled.

"G-Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna squeaked nervously.

"Maa, maa, Gokudera! Let's just eat?" Yamamoto said cheerfully, swinging an arm on Gokudera's shoulders.

"Get your arm off me, baseball freak!" Gokudera shouted. They sat at their seats: Giotto was at the head of the table, with his Guardians to his right starting with G. Tsuna sat to Giottos' left and beside him was Gokudera. Tsuna noticed how Alaude sat at the far end beside a bored looking Lampo. Hibari on the other hand, sat as far away as possible with a scary vibe surrounding him.

"O-Onii-san, you were supposed to arrive here yesterday. Why wasn't there any sign of you before today?" Tsuna decided to ask.

"That's because I was boxing_ to the extreme_!" Ryohei answered before stuffing his mouth with vegetables.

"E-Eh? You…you were…_boxing?" _Tsuna asked. "Where and when did you find the time to do that?"

"When I arrived, I thought I was a part of a movie set! Then I heard fighting. These men were fighting with each other in an _extremely_ crowded area!"

"I will arrest them," Alaude declared.

"Now, now, Alaude, they won't be there anymore," Giotto reasoned. Alaude's attention returned to his food.

Tsuna turned back to Ryohei. "Then what happened?"

"This really tall man with funny scars came up to me and asked whether I wanted to do boxing to earn money!" He took out the bag of money he earned.

Lampo raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot, considering the type of boxing you were doing."

"What do you mean by which type?" Ryohei asked.

Lampo was about to tell him about the illegal boxing and gambling network that Alaude had been working on uncovering. Apparently, they beat the hell out of people who don't pay them back properly or cheat. Murder is no surprise there.

Alaude put the fork which was half raised to his mouth back onto his plate with a loud clatter. Giotto did the same. The rest looked at them with confused expressions.

"What did he look like?" Giotto asked.

Ryohei thought. "He was bald. Hm! What else? I extremely forget!"

"The scar."

"Huh?" Ryohei said.

Giotto interpreted Alaude's statement. "What did this scar look like?"

"Well, he had a few of them around his face! There was one of them on his forehead!" He drew a horizontal line across his own to help with the description. "And then this weird looking one on his cheek!"

Alaude put down his knife and wiped his mouth with his napkin.

"Anything else?" Giotto leaned into the table with a gleam in his eyes.

"Mm…" Ryohei thought.

Tsuna sensed that this was important for some reason. "Onii-san, do you know his name?"

"Ah!" He grinned. "That Dono guy's dolphin had a similar name!"

"Dono as in the honorific?" Asari said. "No one uses that term anymore."

Tsuna let out a forced laugh and shifted his eyes. "Ah…yeah…we have a friend who… erm was…_taught, _how to speak Japanese using the honorific dono…"

"Gwuappa! I want more food!" Lambo requested. Gokudera punched his head—hair, more like.

"Shut up, stupid cow!"

"Alfin?" Tsuna remembered the name of the dolphin which was Basil's box weapon in the future.

"Alfin…" Giotto thought out loud. "Alfi…Alfi…Alfi… Alaude? Any clues?"

"Alfio," Alaude said. "Alfio Addo, co-leader of the underground boxing and gambling world. Age: thirty four, height: six feet two inches. Blue eyes and red hair. Tattoo of an eagle on right arm. Italian descent. Mother: died from birth. Father: abandoned him at the age of five. Other siblings: unknown."

Tsuna and his friends' eyes widened at each fact. Primo's family, used to such mechanical info-readings, didn't bat an eyelash and continued eating. Only Giotto seemed to be listening. Alaude continued, "He used to be professional boxer until he lost the use of one eye. He is also responsible for the murder of three people. He met and created the underground gambling twenty years ago with Savino Mirko, age thirty seven. Height: six feet. Origins: unknown," he said through gritted teeth.

"Ryohei," Giotto said in a thoughtful tone, "you said that this man invited you to have a boxing match?"

"Yeah! I WENT AGAINST _EXTREME _OPPONENTS!" he said. "I was planning to go again later!"

"Great!" Giotto brightened from his straight face. "You can bring us there!"

Alaude also stood.

G sighed. "I'll go as well," he said. Giotto shrugged. There was no reason to refuse. That would leave Knuckle, Asari, Lampo, and Daemon in the mansion. He paused and rethought this. Knuckle and Asari should be able to keep the mansion in one peace while they were gone… Alaude and Daemon would be separated, which meant that there would be even less of a chance of the mansion being destroyed. Giotto's grin went even wider. This gets better and better. Lampo might become a victim to Daemon's tricks, but he reminded himself that Asari and Knuckle will be there to stop anything from getting out of hand. Perfect. His mansion will remain intact.

"Right. Alaude, G and I will go. Ryohei, could you tell us where you fought?"

"EXTREME! DO YOU WANT TO GO THERE AS WELL?" Ryohei said excitedly. He hadn't caught on that they were going to raid the place yet, but a certain prefect had.

He latched onto the chance to bite some herbivores to death. "I'm going," he said, leaving no room for arguments. Tsuna began to worry. Reborn hit his student's head painfully.

"You have to trust them, Tsuna."

"I do! You didn't have to hit me!"

"Then why are you sulking?" The hitman retorted, sending his student another punch. Tsuna groaned.

"It's just… I know that Onii-san and Hibari-san will do alright but…I will still worry; I don't want anything to happen to them."

Reborn smirked.

"Herbivore. You underestimate me."

_Hiiee…._

"I-I'm very sorry, Hibari-san!"

"Che. We're going to have to bring about twenty men with us," G said. Giotto nodded, agreeing with G who was in command of their battle forces. "We can't do it right now because too many people will be around and that might warn them. We'll do it after dark. Most likely around midnight because most people are asleep by then."

"We'll go with your plan," Giotto said.

_There _is _no other plan, _G chuckled inwardly. Instead of saying it out loud, he kept it inside. He'll let his friend take the floor for now. "In the mean time, you might as well do some paper work."

Giotto's expression immediately became sour.

* * *

><p><strong>Lunch<strong>

"Um…Reborn…what do we do now?" Tsuna asked. Reborn, who sat to Tsuna's right. If it was anyone other than Reborn, Gokudera would have by now kicked them off. Reborn finished eating his breakfast and glanced at his student.

"We wait until Talbot finishes fixing the time machine. Then we can go home. Dame-Tsuna, hold that properly. Sit up straight; face welcoming; don't hold the knife like that while talking. That can mislead someone of your intentions." In a flash, Leon became a pointer, smacking against Tsuna's back and fingers. He winced and sat up. Giotto stared at them. Reborn's actions made him aware of his own posture, which was currently perfect, lucky him... _I wonder if he will do that to me if I sat like that, _Giotto mused.

Then a man ran in. Giotto's smile fell from his face at the sight of his subordinate.

"Are you alright? What happened?" All of them stiffened, even Tsuna's family, who didn't know what was going on.

"Primo! The…the…" He huffed. A servant rushed in with a glass of water. The man swallowed the liquid greedily.

"Slow down…take your time. What's going on?"

"The Lestre Famigli—"

Giotto interrupted him. "Hold on…not here." He refrained from looking at his guests.

"No time," Reborn said, quickly taking in the situation. Something within the mafia was going on and it had to be dealt quickly. "Just say it."

_But...Tsunayoshi and his friends…I don't want to get them involved. _Reborn seemed to know what Giotto was thinking because he smirked.

"They know what you do for a living. They, too, are in the mafia."

_Wh-What? _Giotto thought. _Never mind. I'll have to deal with that later. _He turned to the man. "What's going on?"

"The Lestre Famiglia is on their way to the town! We're trying to stop them before they reach there but I'm afraid that we won't be able to hold out any longer!" Giotto's reaction was instant.

"G, take care of things here."

"Wha—!" G exclaimed. Giotto turned to Alaude who was already standing. Anyone who disrupted the peace would be punished accordingly. It was just a coincidence that those people were under Giotto's protection. They walked to the door.

"We'll go too!" Ryohei stood up and knocked his chair over. Tsuna gave a nod that he would like to help as well. Hibari also looked like he wanted to go. After all, there was a fight involved.

"We'd like to help," Tsuna said, voicing the thoughts of his friends.

"No," Giotto and Alaude said sharply. Alaude glared at Giotto and walked off ahead to let Giotto deal with the weaklings. "I don't want to get you involved."

"But—" Tsuna said. He stopped himself. _Do…I want to get involved in this mafia business again? _Giotto didn't wait for his answer because he ran after his Cloud Guardian.

"Damn that Giotto!" G cursed. "I am going to give him an earful once he gets back!"

"Yamamoto-kun…you know that we…" Asari said.

"Oh, you mean the mafia?" Yamamoto laughed. "Yeah, we know!"

"So that means the Vongola Famiglia is still around two hundred years later, then?" Daemon asked. Most of the tenth family glared at him. Throughout the meal, they've been trying to ignore the man whose ghost caused them so much trouble in the future.

"E-Everyone…" Tsuna said nervously. "That's…not nice…"

"But J—!" Tsuna cupped his hand quickly over Gokudera's mouth.

"Aheheh…" he said as sweat rolled down his face.

Reborn narrowed his eyes. "Dame-Tsuna, you didn't tell them yet?"

"N…no." Reborn snorted. He'll let his student pick the moment to tell them, although a few of them might have already guessed.

"Daemon," G said. "Just because they know that their ancestors are in the mafia doesn't mean that they know whether the Vongola Family is still around." Although he, too, wish they knew.

"We can do better than that!" Gokudera shouted. "We're _in _the Vongola Family!"

Daemon chuckled. "You expect us to believe that a bunch of kids are in the mafia?"

"Kufufu. And why won't you?" Mukuro asked dangerously. His trident was ready to use. "Although _I _am not in the mafia, I have been thrown in together with them. You underestimate me."

"Hiiiee! Don't fight here!" Tsuna said anxiously.

G slammed the table again. "Giotto told me to take care of things here and that means no fighting until he gets back."

"Let's all pray for Giotto and Alaude's safe return!" Knuckle said.

"NO! WE SHOULD GO AND CHEER THEM ON!" Ryohei said, now pumped up.

Hibari stood up abruptly to leave. He couldn't stand another minute in the room.

"H-Hibari-san…" Tsuna sweatdropped. Lambo began to feel left out of the conversation. Then his face brightened. He did what any other annoying kid would do. He scanned the room and locked eyes with a green haired lanky nineteen-year old.

"NYAHAHAA! FOOD FIGHT!" Lambo suddenly cried and threw a handful of jelly straight into Lampo's face.

"Why you little brat!" Lampo dunked a piece of bread into the soup and smeared it on Lambo.

"Stop the stupid fight!" G ordered.

"OH, SHADDUP!" Lampo and Lambo grabbed whatever they could and threw it at the right-hand men.

Soon there was a full scale food fight happening in the hall, with Hibari glaring at them before walking out.

SMACK!

Something fell to the floor from his back: a slice of pie. He turned around to see who did it.

Everyone was throwing food at each other, not paying attention to him. Who threw it? It doesn't matter. They'll all be bitten to death by ruining his prefect jacket. His tonfa came out. The first person he saw was a pineapple head. His usual unsmiling lips turned upwards. He hit Mukuro who blocked instinctively with his trident.

"Kufufu. Who have we here? Little Kyoya is going to join in the fight?" Hibari's glare told him he would be bitten to death.

The harmless food fight—well, it wasn't actually harmless—turned into a weapons/food fight. G took out his gun and Gokudera his dynamite. Lambo threw food grenades at Lampo who ducked under the table. Daemon made illusions at Tsuna, who was doing his best to avoid getting hit. The illusions were stopped by Chrome, who stood in front of her boss. The two of them stared at her with surprise.

"Ch-Chrome?" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Boss…" She didn't want anything to happen to the second person in the world who as ever accepted her for who she was. Tsuna gulped. He had never seen Chrome look like that before and considering the fact that she had powered up since going to the future… he didn't want to know how this would turn out.

Asari and Yamamoto were trying to calm their friends and Knuckle prayed for their sanity. After all, what kind of twenty year old would find themselves in a food fight with teenagers? Ryohei cheered them on and punched the food to dust if they flew his way.

"Dame-Tsuna, do something!" Reborn ordered his pupil who hid under the table.

"What do you want me to do?" Tsuna shrieked.

"I don't know—you're the boss. Order them to stop."

"I can't do that!" He took a quick peek and ducked back down. Hibari and Mukuro were fighting against Daemon, who knocked into the two when he was avoiding Chrome's blueberry tarts. Annoyed that someone interrupted their fight, they attacked him. Mukuro also did it for sweet revenge.

BAM!

They all froze at the gunshot. Sure, G was also shooting his gun, but this shot was followed by an air of command—something G didn't put into his shots today.

"Everyone, please stop," a calm voice said. "You're wasting food and ruining the room." The first generation Guardians' eyes widened at the sight of Tsuna standing on the table with a Sky Dying Will flame on his forehead. His gloves were still in his pocket since he didn't think of fighting.

"Hibari-san, you promised to not fight nor cause trouble," Tsuna said to his Cloud Guardian.

"Mukuro, you said that you weren't part of the mafia, so why were you offended by Daemon's comment?"

Mukuro narrowed his eyes. "Sawada Tsunayoshi…you know what happened in the future." He didn't need to clarify as to whom he was talking about.

"Primo won't be happy when he sees this mess," Tsuna commented as an afterthought. Primo's Guardians gulped. Oh, they knew how Giotto cared for the mansion, alright.

"Y-You…" G stuttered. "That flame on your head…"

_Shoot, _Tsuna thought. He stopped using Hyper Mode.

"I didn't know anyone other than Primo who can do that," Knuckle said.

Daemon seemed to examine Tsuna like an endangered species.

Gokudera climbed the table and stood in front of Tsuna protectively, ready to take any attacks Daemon might throw.

"Gokudera-kun, I think it's alright."

"But Juudaime…" Gokudera whispered. "It's _Daemon…_and this is the past."

"It's fine," Tsuna insisted. He jumped off the table and surprised everyone including himself by not tripping over his own feet. He left to go to his room.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera followed, not realising that he said "Juudaime".

"Oi, Tsuna! Wait up!"

"SAWADA!"

"Boss…"

"Kufuf. Come on, mister prefect. Let's see what Tsunayoshi has under his sleeve this time." Mukuro chuckled evilly and followed Ryohei out the door. Chrome was just a step behind.

"Hn." Hibari had to admit that he was curious about the herbivore's behaviour. "I don't take orders from you." But he still went; unsatisfied with the unfinished fights he kept on having for the past few days. He gave Daemon one last parting gift before leaving the room: a pie in the face.

The first generation stayed quiet as they thought of what happened. Daemon was seething with rage but held it in, plotting the perfect revenge.

The door creaked open and heads turned. People moved away from it.

"_What. Did. You. Do. To. This. Place." _Giotto asked with a horrified look in his eyes. Alaude was behind him. The two of them looked at the hall which was beautiful, glorious, grand, sparkling—you get the idea—before they left. Now, the walls were newly decorated with holes made from bullets with a fine layer of cream smeared to the side. The floor was covered with tiles the colours of the rainbow as well as crumbs of tarts, smashed cakes, soup, drinks, eggs, and bread. Eating utensils were bent out of shape and sticking out of the walls in the case of forks and knives.

The chandelier in the middle, which wasn't lit, since light pooled in from the previously beautiful stainless glass windows, was on the floor in a messy heap. Chairs were broken as well and there were a few new scratches on the table which had surprisingly endured all the fights had on it. Plates and platters were flipped, on the said table or the floor. There were signs of explosions all around the room, not to mention the door Giotto still held onto was splattered with red jelly which reminded him of blood.

"We can explain, Giotto," G said quickly. "We didn't start it." Primo waved at his right-hand man, telling him to continue on with whatever excuse he had. "That brat, Lambo, started the food fight."

"And that gave you the right to go along with him, too?" Giotto asked. G muttered something incomprehensible. He sighed. "I thought I told you to take care of things here."

"Well, they started it. That Tsuna kid couldn't even take care of his own men," Daemon said stiffly.

Giotto snapped his head to his direction. "What are you talking about?" Giotto demanded. "What do you mean by his own men?"

Daemon scowled and shrugged. "He was clearly in charge. They all listen to him, so he could have stopped them earlier, but he didn't. It was only after Reborn shot a bullet that he turned…into a leader?"

Giotto narrowed his eyes. A bullet? "Tell me everything they told you about while we were gone," Giotto said. "His tutor told me that they were in the mafia."

"Yeah, they told us that they are in the Vongola, but we didn't really believe them because they are still kids. There's no way they could be involved," G explained. He didn't bother trying to find a chair to sit on, since there were none. Leaning on the wall was also out of the option because it was too dirty for his liking.

"Let's move somewhere else before discussing it," Giotto said. "My office." He turned to Alaude who had already disappeared. "And all who were involved will be cleaning this place with the staff."

* * *

><p>"Tsuna, why did we leave so suddenly?" Yamamoto asked when they were in Tsuna's large room.<p>

"Damn you! I was going to ask Juudaime that!" Gokudera shouted, raising his fist to Yamamoto.

He laughed. "Maa, maa, it doesn't matter who asks the question, right?"

Tsuna sat on his bed. The others made themselves at home all around the room. Lambo was happily sucking on a lollipop he found in his hair and was keeping quiet. Tsuna was nervous with Hibari in the room because if something bad happened, his room could be destroyed in an instant.

"That was extreme! We should do it again!" Ryohei said.

"Tch! Now's not the time to be talking about that!"

"Kufufu. I would like to fight against Daemon Spade again. It was entertaining, seeing him struggle."

"Hn," Hibari agreed.

"I didn't want us to cause a ruckus," Tsuna said slowly. The bickering stopped immediately. The sudden quietness made him shift uneasily. "…If we suddenly started treated Daemon worse than anyone else, they might suspect that something happened in the future concerning Daemon."

"He betrayed Primo, Juudaime! And he almost got us all killed when we fought against him!"

"But, that was actually a misunderstanding!" Tsuna interjected. "And...we forgave him. Or at least...I did."

"Vongola Decimo," Mukuro said coldly. "Have you forgotten what he did to Nagi? How naive you are to forgive such a person."

Tsuna lowered his gaze. "Still…he thought that by making the Vongola ruthless, he would be making it stronger. Elena told him to keep the Vongola strong before she died, but I think she meant to keep it a vigilant group who has the respect and love of the people it protects, not have them cower in fear. I think _that _was how she wanted the Vongola to become stronger in." They stayed quiet as they let the words sink in. "A-And besides, he hasn't done anything yet, right?"

"Juudaime is right! Nothing's happened yet. Daemon should still be the good guy at this point in time."

"Kufufu. You switch sides so easily, Hayato," Mukuro observed.

"That's because I'm on whichever side Juudaime is on! As his right-hand man, I will follow him to the end of the world!"

"Hahaha! That's true, I guess. Don't you think so, Senpai?"

"ARG! SAWADA'S _EXTREMELY _RIGHT! LET'S ENJOY THE TIME WE HAVE THERE _TO THE EXTREME!" _

Tsuna smiled.

"So, what are we going to do about this information?" Reborn said. They had forgotten that the hitman was in the room. He was leaning against the door smirking.

Tsuna knew that smirk. It was the "I know something you don't smirk. "What do you mean?"

"You can't tell Primo about Daemon betraying the Vongola. That won't change anything. And he will become suspicious of how you know that. Besides, Primo knows that Daemon is a traitor," Reborn said.

"True…"

"So, we'll just forget about it?" Yamamoto asked cheerfully.

* * *

><p>"<em>What?" <em>Giotto said. "They're in the Vongola Family?"

"Nufufu. I'm quite surprised that the Vongola made it so far to the tenth generation."

"But they're so young," Giotto murmured. "We've caused them a lot of trouble…" He and his Guardians were in his office with snacks on the table and tea cups in everyone's hands or in front of them. "Why are children involved in the mafia? They should be having fun playing with their friends."

"They seem to be doing that," Lampo snorted. "They just ganged up on us in a food fight." G shot him a look that clearly meant shut up. They did _not _have to bring up the mess they left downstairs.

"What I'm curious about," Giotto said, "is who Decimo is."

"Huh?" They said.

"Do you think that those who traveled to this time…do you think that they are the guardians of Vongola the Tenth?"

"No way. Those annoying brats—Guardians? Giotto, you have to find better jokes."

"Those annoying brats," Daemon said through gritted teeth, "can fight. Even the one we thought was a no-good look-a-like." They stared at Giotto, scrutinising their boss' features.

"What?" Giotto asked. "Something wrong with my face?"

"He really _did _look like Giotto," G said almost to himself.

"Yes. It is eerie how two people can act so alike," Lampo said.

"It was quite a shock. Before, they already look like brothers, but when _that _happened, it looked like Giotto's younger twin with brown hair."

"What are you all talking about?" Giotto demanded.

"Nufufu. Not to mention the aura. However, it was even more naive."

"To the limit!"

"Who are you all talking about?" Giotto sighed.

"Your descendant," they said at the same time.

"What _about _him?"

"He's just like you."

"I know that, so could you just get to the—?"

"He can go into Dying Will Mode. Not that embarrassing one you had Lampo try out for you, but the calm and dangerous one," Daemon put in.

"Hey!" Lampo complained. G dug a knuckle into the boy's head.

"Shut up."

"He…he what?" Giotto asked. He was currently in a state of shock. _The first time I entered that mode was when I was eighteen years old! Even then, it was a strain. How can he do it when he's just what…sixteen? And it took me forever to master it!_

"Yes," G said, reading his friend's mind.

"Do you think that he's…Vongola Decimo?" Lampo asked. They stared at their youngest member. "W-What? If they are our descendants, it's possible that they are also Guardians. So, what is the problem with that kid being the Vongola Boss? Giotto's Primo, after all."

"The _problem _is that the kid's a wimp! He can't just rely on Hyper Mode all the time."

"Now, now, you're being to mean to the child," Asari said lightly. "You don't know how someone really acts until you get close to them."

"Che."

"They are so young though…"

"Nufufu. You said that before, Giotto."

"I know. I stand by it."

Lampo suddenly burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"I—I haha! I—I just realised that—that—if Tsuna—haha!"

"Just get on with it!" G threatened to punch the boy.

"If Tsuna's such a klutz, does that mean that Giotto is also one? HAHAA!"

"Hm…"

"I'm not a klutz!"

G was now rubbing his chin, his elbow resting on a knee.

"G…" Giotto warned. His best friend smirked.

Daemon scowled. "We all met Giotto when he was just turning twenty. By then he would have hid any clumsiness he had far away. G is the only one who knew him since childhood."

"Don't forget the Shimon Boss!" Lampo said. He was sitting upright, waiting for the answer. He turned to G expectantly. G and Giotto were staring at each other, having a silent conversation that only best friends since childhood could ever hope to succeed in. Giotto's eyes said, "I dare you to tell them. You won't see any type of drug for the rest of your life, even if it means taking the drug lord's daughter to dinner to seal the deal."

"Oh, yeah? If you do that, I'll tell them even more," G's eyes said with a raised brow.

Giotto's eyes narrowed. "Traitor."

"Klutz-o-Gio." A vein popped on Giotto's head.

Lampo's eyes widened. "Wow! I never knew Giotto could do that!"

"Of course he can," Daemon said.

"Hey—I bet you G's gonna get beat up," Lampo whispered to Daemon who smirked.

"Fine. Whoever loses must treat all the Guardians to the fanciest dinner in the city. I personally think Giotto's going to be too embarrassed to do anything to G. Nufufu."

"Deal." They shook on it.

Knuckle sighed. "Gambling is not something a child should be caught doing. And as an adult, _Daemon, _you should not be encouraging him."

"It's fine, God's messenger," Daemon smirked again. "A little gambling won't do any harm." He kept in mind though, that Knuckle can be really scary when he witnessed too many things that go against his moral code…like gambling away land and fortune, which was what he and Lampo have been doing ever since they found out that each other had too much money and not the slightest idea as to what to do with it. Being the heir to a very rich merchant family, Lampo had a lot of money to throw around. Daemon, being a noble, also had plenty of money at his disposal.

"So! Is Giotto a klutz or not?" Asari voiced the question everyone wanted answered. Giotto glanced at his Rain Guardian, then at his storm.

"G, I mean what I said," Giotto's eyes said.

"As did I." Outloud, G said—

The door opened and Alaude entered. Everyone jumped.

"Alaude! You actually came. I was starting to think that you didn't want to get involved with this future nonsense."

"I don't. That's why I'm leaving."

"What?" Giotto furrowed his brows.

"Give me the goddamn file for France."

"Alaude," Knuckle said disapprovingly.

Alaude shot him a glare before addressing Giotto. "I'm going. Now hand it over."

"I want you to stay," Giotto said softly. Alaude took in a deep breath. He closed his eyes. They waited to see what would happen. Lampo and Daemon silently placed another bet.

"Everyone, get out," Alaude said.

_"Excuse me?!"_ G said in astonishment.

"Get. Out."

"It's okay, just listen to him," Giotto said seriously. Something was wrong. They grudgingly left but G walked up to Giotto.

"Do you really want to stay in the same room as him when he's like that?" he muttered.

Giotto shot him a genuine smile…too genuine. "Don't worry. He won't bite." G scoffed and left a bit unwillingly. Alaude shifted so his right shoulder was in G's path.

G scowled. "What? I'm leaving, okay?"

"Guard the door," Alaude said through gritted teeth. His lips barely separated which made it even harder to hear him. G stared at the Cloud Guardian. Giotto's frown deepened. It's not every day that Alaude asked someone to do something for him. "Just…do it."

G, also knowing something odd was up for Alaude to ask _him _to do something, left and closed the door behind him.

Giotto huffed. "Alaude, what is going on? Are you afraid someone might eavesdrop? You know that G is doing that right now."

"I don't care if it's him," Alaude says quietly. Giotto arched an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah!" Giotto said excitedly. "Apparently, Tsunayoshi can also go into Hyper Dying Will Mode!" His eyes were gleaming as he waited for a reply. Alaude stared at him, unmoving.

"So?"

Giotto was taken aback. "What do you mean, 'so'? It's a big deal! I don't know anyone other than myself who can do that!"

"Your point?"

Giotto frowned at the sight of his calm, collected Cloud Guardian. Did _nothing _surprise the man? He decided to forget about yet _another_ failed attempt to make this Guardian surprised.

"So what's this about France? You were fine yesterday when I asked you to stay."

"I have to confirm something. Nothing will probably happen."

"What are you suggesting?" Giotto demanded.

"I need to confirm something," he repeated. "I'll be back when I am satisfied."

"You know that you'll only be able to do it during your spare time, _after _you complete your mission?"

A hint of a smirk appeared on Alaudeu's face. "Checking with allies is a job I can do with my eyes closed."

"Tell me what you want to confirm."

"No."

"Tell me or you aren't going. I have your passports."

Alaude twitched. He found _all _of them? It was Giotto's turn to smirk. Alaude said, "I will leave even if you have them."

"Tell me what you want to _confirm." _Giotto said slowly. "Or you will not step out of this mansion."

Alaude stared into Giotto's eyes. He already knew that Giotto can tell if he was lying so he didn't bother to. "There is a traitor, Giotto." Giotto's eyes widened for two reasons: one was that Alaude found out about it. The other reason was that it was the first time in five years that Alaude had called him by his name. Alaude noticed something else in those deep, knowing, orange eyes. "You knew," he accused.

Giotto placed his hands over his mouth, covering most of his face except for his eyes which he left open to stare at his Cloud Guardian with tired eyes. "I did not know," Giotto's muffled voice said, "that it would come so soon. My Intuition has been going berserk for the past few months, but I've been ignoring it."

"A dangerous past time," Alaude muttered.

"I know. I just…I don't want to believe it. I want to trust him." He let out a bitter laugh. He leaned back and took out a file from a drawer. He opened it and scanned the first few pages.

"This one is yours. Last time, I accidentally gave G your mission and he didn't talk to me for a month." Alaude snatched it from Giotto's hands and skimmed through it himself. Giotto explained and highlighted some facts he wanted Alaude to pay extra attention to. "Ricco Tomaso, an old friend of mine, is planning on joining the mafia after we've discussed it a few years ago," Giotto said although Alaude probably already knew about this. "He said that he wants to be Vongola's ally so he's asking us to help him out even though I tried to convince him not to."

"So you want me to help him?"

"Yes, I want you to help him. At best it will take at least three or four years for his family to be founded. Just like how the Vongola took so many years."

"We had a short cut," Alaude observed. Giotto nodded. Being a powerful vigilant group automatically mixed them into the Mafia.

Alaude snapped the folder shut and he reverted back to his aloof self. He walked to the door but paused. "Watch your back." Giotto smiled at the hint of concern in Alaude's voice. "Oh, and one more thing. Don't get too cocky." In Alaude's hand was an Italian passport he showed to a baffled Giotto as he walked out.

G strolled in and lounged on the chair in front of Giotto's desk. "A mole, huh?"

"Hm."

"Why'd you let _him_ to do it? You could just get one of his agents do it for you. They aren't as high ranked as us Guardians of course, but they_ are_ capable of doing such things." Giotto stared at his friend patiently.

G's eyes widened a fraction when he figured out why Giotto let a Guardian do the job.

* * *

><p>Alaude was in his room packing light. Once he had read the file, he burned it to ash and let the wind carry it away out the window. Daemon leaned on his door frame.<p>

"Why are you so anxious to leave, mm?"

"Too crowded," was the tart reply.

"Nufufu. I suppose so. After all, eight more brats are living here. Even I would want to leave."

Alaude finished and slung a bag over his shoulder. He stopped at the door and stared at Daemon who obligingly moved so Alaude could close and lock his door.

* * *

><p><strong><em>-LLM<em>**

**_Edited 2015-03-15th_**


	4. Incoming Video Call, Vongola Version!

**Chapter Four**

After Reborn suddenly left his room, Tsuna brought the "meeting" to a close. Hibari, Mukuro, and Chrome went on their way to wherever they go, leaving him with Lambo, Ryohei, Yamamoto, and Gokudera. He was currently resting on his bed after receiving a severe beating from Hibari—meaning, a bruised face swelling so much he was almost unrecognisable except for his hair. One eye was so badly bruised that he couldn't open it. He was also given a sprained pinkie, bites—er—_scratches_ on his arms and legs, bruised bones, and nerves which won't respond to his command at the moment. All of these were fixed by Ryohei right away, but it took his energy as well so he was deemed useless at the moment.

He watched with amusement as the two silver-haired hot heads argued over something he had already lost track of; most likely his injuries, with Lambo annoying Gokudera at the same time. Yamamoto sat beside Tsuna on his bed, relaxed. The two of them watched Ryohei and Gokudera's verbal fight for another two minutes in silence.

"What should we do now?" Yamamoto asked.

Tsuna shrugged. "There isn't much to do here." Then there was a knock on the door. Ryohei and Gokudera paused their bickering and stared at the door along with Yamamoto and Tsuna.

They turned to the brunet when the knock came again; Tsuna sweat-dropped. "_C-Come __in,__" _he called, subconsciously knowing that his friends were waiting for _him _to invite their visitor in.

"That's the thing," Giotto said. "It's locked."

Gokudera quickly ran to open the door for Primo. Then he stood at attention. "Hello, Primo!"

Giotto looked at Tsuna and raised an eyebrow. Tsuna laughs inwardly. "Please come in!" Gokudera continued. Once he was in, the door shut and he walked back to Tsuna who was beginning to stand.

"Is something wrong, Primo?" Tsuna asked. Giotto faltered for a heartbeat before flashing them a smile.

Giotto said after clearing his throat, "No, nothing." _He __saw __through __my __façade, _he thought. _Don__'__t __tell __me__…__Hyper __Intuition __has __also __been __passed __down __through __all __those __generations?_

"Oh," Tsuna said. Giotto nodded once. _Hm. __His __Intuition __is __either __very __weak, __or __he__'__s __not __trusting __it. _Because he knew that anyone with Hyper Intuition could have seen through that lie.

"P-Primo…"

"Yes?" Giotto raises his head at his hesitant descendant.

"D-Did you need something?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact. I need all of those who were involved to go downstairs to help clean up the dining hall," he said with a serious face. Gokudera and Yamamoto shifted nervously. They saw how messed up the place was…Ryohei simply jumped up from his chair and roared.

"Tch. Just get the servants to clean it up," was Gokudera's immediate reply. Whenever he was little, it was the maid's job to clean up the messes he made, so he was used to that.

Giotto frowned slightly. "The pigsty was made by you and my Guardians. The servants don't have to do that. They already have to help keep the mansion clean."

"EXTREME! I'LL TREAT IT AS TRAINING! COME ON, SAWADA!" He marched up to Tsuna. "LET'S HAVE A BOXING MATCH AFTER THE CLEAN-UP TRAINING!"

"Hiiiee! I never agreed to have a boxing match with you!"

Giotto winced. Now_ t__hat _was a deadly weapon…_If __that __was __any __louder, __I __might __have __to __have __Knuckle __fix __my __ears__…_

"Oi! Let go of Juudaime! He just recovered from that prefect's beating!" Giotto watched silently. "Primo said that only the ones who were involved with the food fight will have to clean up! Juudaime didn't do anything!"

Giotto's eyes narrowed at the mention of the food fight. "I understand that Tsunayoshi was not actively involved in it," he said calmly, making them all look at him nervously. "But from what I have heard from my Guardians, he was responsible for your behaviour. He failed to stop you from starting the fight, so therefore he is involved." Giotto watched as all their eyes widen. He smiled to himself. _That __should __do __the __trick. _He expected the brunet to groan and complain about how he had to also clean up and that he wasn't actually the leader of the group. What Giotto just said wasn't what he really thought anyways. It was just his Guardians' assumptions. He wasn't actually sure whether this boy was the leader yet. He definitely didn't look the type. So, in plain words, he was bluffing.

What he _wasn__'__t_ expecting, were the guilty faces of his friends. He was most shocked by the actions of the one named Gokudera, who was already on his knees.

"JUUDAIME! I HAVE FAILED AS YOUR RIGHT-HAND MAN! I DON'T DESERVE YOUR FORGIVENESS BUT I WILL STILL APOLOGISE! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY!"

Tsuna panicked at the state of his friend. It's been so long since he saw Gokudera like this! He had stopped trying to hurt himself while apologising after the first few weeks they met.

Yamamoto also sported a concerned frown on his face, as well as a guilty look. "Sorry, Tsuna…I didn't realise…"

"I-I-It's okay!" Tsuna said and tried to get Gokudera to stand up. "Gokudera-kun! Please stand up! I can't bear seeing you like that! Onii-san! Help me out!"

"SAWADA'S RIGHT!" Ryohei said. "LET'S GO ALREADY!" _That__'__s __not __what __I __need __your __help __for! _Tsuna thought desperately.

"Lambo-san wants more candy!"

Tsuna looked around the room. Gokudera was still on the ground. Yamamoto was standing around gloomily. Lambo was whining and pulling on Tsuna's pants, trying to get his attention. Ryohei was trying to get them all to follow him outside. Giotto was still leaning on the doorway looking at them. He looked so calm just leaning there.

But Giotto wasn't. He had _no __idea __what__ to __do. _The volume in the room suddenly went up twenty notches and he was so stunned, he could do nothing but stay where he was and sigh. _So__…__he _is _their __boss. __But__…__is __he __the__…_Vongola Boss? _I __fear __how __the __Vongola __will __survive __in __the __years __to __come, __if __that i__s __the __case._

"U-Uh, Lambo! You have food in your hair!" Tsuna said quickly. "Yamamoto! Please stop looking like that! It's not your fault. This isn't the Yamamoto I know!" Tsuna's hands hover above Gokudera and he turns to Ryohei and back to Gokudera, unsure.

"GOKUDERA-KUN, GET UP!" He yells loudly, accidentally making it an order from the tone of his voice—something he was forced to pay attention to during Nono's lessons. His left hand slaps his mouth shut as the room grew quiet. Gokudera was immediately on his feet.

"Hai, Juudaime!" he said, quite shocked himself by the order.

_He__'__s __good,_ Giotto thought. Tsuna turned to look at him with a jittery feeling and a red face.

"W-We're all going to help clean up, right?" he asked. "Let's go!"

"Hai!" was the answer he got from Gokudera and a cheerful Yamamoto. Ryohei shouted a victory cry and Lambo silently chewed his bag of marshmallows. Tsuna cringed at the sight of those white, fluffy sweets. He saw too many of them back at home.

The door is flung open yet again, this time by none other than G. Primo stepped to the side before he can be squash to the side like a pancake. To their surprise, Lampo was also with them.

"_GIOTTO!__" _The two of them shouted. Giotto stepped away from the sound waves which technically pushed him back. They were _that _loud.

"…What?"

"If you're making him clean up, you have to as well!" Lampo said as he grabbed one of Giotto's arms.

"Huh?"

"We are supposed to be your responsibility," Lampo smirked and cocked an eyebrow mischievously. Giotto frowned. He didn't like where this conversation was going. He was suddenly pulled into a headlock by G. Tsuna's jaw dropped at the sight. Primo…the…the one who appeared in their time in such a cool and majestic fashion…was…Tsuna shook his head slowly. He just couldn't believe it. He and the others were trying to hold in their laughter, although Lambo and Yamamoto didn't bother to.

"G!" Giotto exclaimed. His friend grinned evilly.

"Which _means, _you, our dear boss… is cleaning up with us."

* * *

><p>"Talbot, how is it going?" Reborn asked after he left Tsuna's room. He was currently inside Talbot's secret lab. The inventor gasped in shock and whirled around to face Reborn's voice.<p>

"_What?_ How did you get down here?"

Reborn smirked and tilts his fedora up. "You are forgetting that I am the world's greatest hitman."

Talbot nods slowly as he processed the information."Um…about the time machine…"

Reborn's eyes narrow and his smirk turns into a frown. "Go on."

Talbot frowned and tried to figure out how to say it.

"Say it right now or I'll shoot you." Leon turned into the green gun.

"I used up all the parts that are needed in bringing you here and I don't have any spares to return you to the future with," Talbot said in his raspy voice.

Reborn glared at the inventor and says through gritted teeth, "One day I will make it a goal to kill every useless inventor on earth."

Talbot grinned crookedly. "Oho! That makes me lucky then."

* * *

><p>Tsuna was the first to enter the hall beside Giotto. He stared in surprise at the mess it was in. <em>I <em>_don__'__t __remember __it __being _this _bad! _Tsuna gave Giotto a nervous glance and saw that Giotto looked sad and angry at the same time. He gulped. _I-I __hope __he__'__s __not __too __angry __at __us__… __If __he __decides __to __kick __us __out __Reborn __might __make __us __camp __in __the __forest! __NOOOO! _

G was already telling everyone what they were to clean up. G turned to the brunet who was in the process of pulling out his hair. "Hey! Are you paying attention to what I'm saying?" he demanded, earning a glare from Gokudera.

"Don't talk like that to Judaime!" Gokudera growled.

"Why do you call him Juudaime?" Asari asked. Gokudera twitched. Opps.

Giotto was pretty sure that Decimo in Japanese was Juudaime. _It__'__s __not __a __bad __guess, _Giotto thought. "G, stop arguing with him," he said. G snorted and looked away from Gokudera.

Tsuna's eyes stared with amazement and envy. _I wish I can do that!_

"Anyways, you and Giotto are cleaning the walls," G said to Tsuna. He nodded slowly and looked around. The walls were…well…_high._

"H-How are we going to reach the top?" Tsuna wondered. He could clearly see some previously edible substances on the ceiling…

"You fly up there. _Duh.__"_

"Hiiie! Wh-what are you talking about?" Tsuna shrieked.

"We know you can fly, so just do it," Lampo said lazily. "Daemon would have joined you but he has to do the windows." Giotto looked at the windows which Daemon himself designed back when he was a bored aristocrat.

_No __wonder __the __shapes __look __like __melons__… _the tenth generation family thought.

"I can't fly!" Tsuna cried. _I __never __flew __in __front __of __them __before! __How __did __they __guess? _But sadly, everyone ignored him.

"Nufufufu. I will find whoever did that to those beautiful stained glass windows and torture them to death," he said. Tsuna shivered. He was pretty sure that the cake aimed for him thrown by Ryohei was what hit that window.

"Off you go," G made a shooing gesture towards Giotto, Tsuna, and Daemon. He assigned the rest of them jobs to do. Gokudera and Lambo were in charge of the lower bits of the wall. G tossed them the buckets and scrubs. He pointed to the water which was outside somewhere.

"How am I supposed get any work done with this stupid cow!" Gokudera demanded. G blinked and sighed when he understood what he meant.

"Lambo-san is helpful, Bakadera!" Lambo insisted.

"You ain't!" Gokudera said and kicked Lambo a few metres away.

"Gokudera!" Tsuna yelled in dismay. He ran towards Lambo. "Lambo! Are you all right?"

"Gotta…stay…calm…WHAAAAHAAAAHAAAA!" He took out the ten-year bazooka and aimed it at himself. Tsuna raised his arms to block his head.

POOF!

He coughed as the pink smoke filled the air and dispersed a second later.

"Lambo?"

"Yare yare…Young Vongola, where is this?" seventeen year old Lambo questioned. Giotto and the others squinted to see who this person was. Their eyes opened wide when they saw Lambo.

"Lampo, you have a younger brother!" Knuckle exclaimed.

Lampo was snapped back to reality by the question. "No, I don't have a brother. I have no idea who that is."

Lambo turned his head left and right. Then he locked eyes with Lampo. "Oh," he muttered weakly. "Young Vongola…we won't happen to be…in…the…_past, __past, _are we?"

"Um…yeah, we are, Lambo," Tsuna said slowly. Lambo's eyes widened and he almost fainted. Gokudera grabbed his shirt collar.

"You stupid cow! Do you know how much trouble you've just caused?" he demanded, shaking him.

"E-Eh!" Lambo and Tsuna exclaimed.

"Gokudera-kun, what are you talking about?"

"He just time travelled within a time travel! This physiological occurrence never happened before! According to the theory of time travelling I have created with the knowledge of the ten-year bazooka…" Gokudera had his glasses in place and his hair tied back. A white board appeared as he began to explain the theory. Soon, the white board was filled with complicated equations that Tsuna will never hope to understand.

"U-Uh…forget it, Gokudera-kun…Eh? A-Adult Lambo is still here?" Tsuna touched Lambo to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.

"Whaaat? But I'm supposed to have a training session with I-pin!" Lambo looked truly frightened. "She'll—she'll—she'll hurt me even more than last time if I'm late!" He began to panic but Yamamoto stuffed a lollipop in his mouth.

They all stared at the baseball player in shock, who just laughed. "What?"

"Where did you get that?" Asari asked curiously. Yamamoto grinned and gave them a shrug. I found it on the floor just now, where Lambo used to be!" They turned back to Lambo, who was happily licking a grape flavoured candy.

G sighed. "Whatever. I'm not even going to ask what happened. I've had enough of your nonsense. Just get that brat on his feet and start cleaning." He didn't give Gokudera a chance to argue because he already moved on to the next pair.

"Lampo, you're working with Ryohei in cleaning the floor. Knuckle, you're with Yamamoto and Chrome. Help with the walls as well." He turned to Mukuro and paused. _He __doesn__'__t __seem __to __like __Daemon __much. _"Mukuro—hey! Stop that!" He marched up to Mukuro and Hibari who were about to fight.

Yamamoto and Giotto also approached. Yamamoto, because he sensed that the prefect was going to go wild; he wanted to calm him down, as the rain should. Giotto went because he didn't want anyone to get hurt, nor to see any more damage done to his mansion. He did what he usually did to Daemon when things went rough and he was extremely annoyed. Usually, he wouldn't dare to _this _to his Mist Guardian, but clearly, he was beyond annoyed. Swiftly, he snatched Mukuro's trident from him and stabbed it into the ground point down. He pinched Mukuro's cheeks and right ear badly. Mukuro winced. Yamamoto had Hibari's arms pinned to his sides.

"No fighting," Giotto said in a firm voice.

"P-Primo!" Tsuna squeaked. "W-What are you doing?" Giotto turned his head as if this was a daily thing.

"I don't want to see any more damage done."

"Mmphfufufuf," Mukuro tried to say. "You do know that I can just make another staff appear, don't you?"

"I'll just have to knock you out then." And he did just that, with no warning. Mukuro became slack in Giotto's arms.

"O-Oi…" Gokudera said with mouth opening and closing like a fish. "N-Now way…you just…that bastard…you knocked him out…" Everyone else was just as horrified but more of worry on Chrome's part.

"Mukuro-sama…"

Giotto smiled. "Don't worry. He'll be fine in a bit."

"How did you _extremely _do that?" Ryohei asked. "I tried that and it EXTREMELY FAILED!"

"My secret. We have a lot to clean. And I'd advise you to not create such a mess in the future. Do I make myself clear?" He got seven nods in return. He turned to his own Guardians who just shrugged or looked away. He placed Mukuro against a wall.

"Herbivore. Let go of me." Hibari said angrily.

"Maa, maa, Hibari, that's not going to help us get back to the future!" Hibari glared at Yamamoto and saw that he was right. He gave in, but not easily.

"What do I do then?" Asari asked. "And you don't have a job yet either." G cocked an eyebrow. "We're doing the table." Asari smiled and rolled up his sleeves. Giotto did the same with his shirt and loosened the button. He took out his gloves, which were already in their fighting form, unlike Tsuna's, which appears as a pair of wool mittens.

Giotto watched Tsuna carefully. He didn't take out anything that might be used to light the Dying Will Flame. Giotto lit his and watched Tsuna's eyes shine with awe.

He pointed at it. "You know what this is, correct?"

Tsuna, mesmerized, nodded.

"You can also do it."

Again, his head went up to agree with Giotto's statement. His head froze. "What?" he said instead, still trying to deny it.

"My Guardians saw you in Hyper Dying Will Mode before. Tell me. Are you the Vongola Boss in your time?"

"No, I'm not!" He shook his head back and forth and brought his hands up to also shake in a "no" gesture.

"Oh, he knows already?" Yamamoto laughed from across the room.

"EXTREME!"

"You idiots!" Gokudera shouted.

_The __cat__'__s __out __of __the __bag, _Tsuna thought sadly. He sighed. Everyone was watching him.

"I…I guess…" he whispered.

"Kufufu. Indeed," Mukuro said.

"M-Mukuro!" He saw Mukuro glaring at Giotto.

"If you don't want to embarrass yourself again, I'd suggest you to do as you're told," Giotto said with a frown. _Why __is __my __mansion __always __the __thing __being __destroyed? __Why __can__'__t __it __be __the __trees, __or __the __grass? __Why__…__why, __why?_

Mukuro stiffened and noticed a certain few who were hiding their snickers.

"You actually believe that he is Vongola Decimo?" Daemon asked with a sneer.

"DON'T DOUBT JUUDAIME!" Gokudera yelled in Daemon's face, pulling out his dynamites. "It's true that he's Vongola the Tenth! No one is better suited for the title than him!"

"G-Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna shrieked. "Calm down!" _Arg, __where __is __Reborn __when __you __need __him? _He ran to Gokudera and tugged at the arm holding two dynamite sticks.

"I-if Juudaime says so…" He slowly lowered his arm. Tsuna sighed with relief.

"How about you properly introduce yourselves?" Giotto offered. "You already know us, but we don't really know you." _Although __I __can __pretty __much __guess __who__'__s __who._

"S-Sure…" Tsuna said. He rolled his eyes to Gokudera who instantly puffed out his chest like a cat.

"I'm Gokudera Hayato, Juudaime's right-hand man and Storm Guardian!"

G snorted.

"I'm Yamamoto Takeshi and I like baseball! Oh, and I'm the Rain Guardian!"

"Baka, you're too carefree!"

"I AM SASAWAGA RYOHEI, THE SUN GUARDIAN! PLAY BOXING WITH ME ANYTIME!" He shone like the sun as he spoke. They looked at Mukuro and growled and turned his face away. No way in hell was he putting himself with these people.

"I'm Chrome Dokuro. This is Mukuro-sama...Mukuro-sama is Boss' Mist Guardian…"

Tsuna frowned. "Chrome, you're also my Mist Guardian."

"Two Mist Guardians?" Daemon said. "You're only supposed to have one!"

Chrome inched away from him and Mukuro chuckled evilly, thinking of all the ways he could torture Daemon.

"Chrome fought just as hard as any one of us!" Tsuna said. He was getting tired of telling everyone he met that he has _two _Mist Guardians, not one. Then his face turned red with embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry!" He bowed a few times quickly and deeply. _Shoot! __I __just__…__I __just __yelled __a__t __Primo! __I__'__m __doomed!_

"It's alright," Giotto's eyes softened from their previous confusion.

"I'm the great Lambo-sama, the Lightning Guardian," Lambo declared lazily. Tsuna blinked. _He __really hasn't __changed __much__… _He looked at the spot where Hibari used to be.

"Uh…Hibari-san is…is my Cloud Guardian," Tsuna concluded. As much as he hated admitting he had Guardians and is the Vongola Boss, they're family and he wasn't ashamed of it.

"And...I'm Vongola Decimo," he said quietly. With Tsuna and his Guardians standing together in the same room, the first generation guardians couldn't help but see themselves in the youngsters.

"So…who were the other candidates for the title of boss?" Lampo asked casually as he picked up a bent up spoon from the ground.

Giotto noticed Tsuna flinching at the question. He cocked his head. They all stayed silent, looking at each other.

"W-Well…" Tsuna said hesitantly as he raised a ragged cleaning cloth to the wall and washed the grease away slowly. "There's this man…his name is…" _Should __we __tell __them __names? __It__…__won__'__t __change __the __future... __would __it?_" Tsuna risked it. "His name is Xanxus."

"Xanxus?" G said. "Is he strong?"

Tsuna shivered. "Y-Yeah…he's _really _strong…and _scary.__"_

"Better than you?" Daemon pondered.

"No way!" Gokudera said. "Juudaime beat him in the Sky Battle!"

"Sky Battle?" Giotto repeated from the ceiling. They looked up with open mouths. When did he get up there?

"The Sky Battle's the Sky Battle!" Yamamoto called up.

"That doesn't explain anything, baseball freak!"

"The Sky Battle was the fight between the two candidates for the title of boss and the Vongola Rings. Kufufu."

Giotto was surprised that their rings had lasted for so long but that wasn't what was on his mind at the moment. "You…Decimo and someone else, fought to gain the title?" Tsuna cocked his head at the way Giotto addressed him. Does this mean he was accepted as the Tenth?

"Not only the bosses, but the Guardians also had to fight," Lambo said and yawned. He blinked through one eye.

"Wait. Why are they fighting for the title in the first place?" G frowned. "The current boss' choice should have been final. Besides, the Vongola Family isn't…well, we're a vigilant group in the core. Are there that many strong people who want to lead such a group?"

Lambo opened his mouth to answer but snapped it shut. "Young Vongola will tell you," he said. G turned to him with a crooked knife in his hand which had strawberry jam on. Tsuna eep'd slightly. He was pretty sure that he _shouldn't _tell, but with all the eyes on him, it made it hard not to.

"Y-You see…about that…um…" he gulped. Looking up, he saw Giotto waiting for the answer with…was that giddiness in those eyes?

"Nufuf, come on," Daemon said. "How is the Vongola Family doing?"

"It's…good…?" Tsuna suggested. His head was hit with a random hammer.

"AAAH!" He clutched his head. Gokudera and Yamamoto ran to him.

"Juudaime!"

"Haha, Tsuna! You got a head shot!"

"Dame-Tsuna, you're terrible at explaining things," Reborn said dryly. Ignoring his student's whining, he said, "The Vongola in our time is the more influential family in the entire Mafia." G let out a low whistle. Right now, the Vongola Family's main powers subsided in Sicily, no further. To think that it is known all around the world…Wow. But Reborn wasn't finished.

"It's also the family with the bloodiest history, known to be the cruelest family ever known, and the most dangerous. No one messes with the Vongola unless they wanted to die." G's impressed face fell, replaced with disbelief. Daemon looked more interested. Giotto fall back to the floor and extinguished his flame.

"W-What do you mean?" He demanded, shaking. "W…What do you mean by 'bloodiest history' and 'the cruelest family ever known'?" He turned to Tsuna. Tsuna dropped his wet cloth.

"N-No! I didn't do anything! Their history is so horrifying! Th-That's why I didn't want to be the boss!" _But__… _Tsuna pressed his lip into a thin line as his thoughts tumbled in his head. _But__…__if __I __don__'__t __take __up __the __position __of __boss, __Xanxus __will __make __the __Vongola __even __worse __than __it __already was before Grandpa became boss__… __I__… __After __seeing __their __memories__…__I__…__I __have __the __feeling __that __I __should __fix __it__…_

"The Vongola has become that strong," Daemon murmured.

"No…that can't be…" Giotto said. "I created a vigilant group to protect those who were being abused by the mafia… what you described isn't it..."

"Things change in a few hundred years, Primo," Reborn said and tilted his fedora down to shadow his face. Leon transformed into a couch and Reborn lazed himself upon it.

"Whoever wakes me up shall die a painful death."

"Maa, maa!" Yamamoto laughed. "What's with the long face?"

"What! You idiot! Don't you know how bad this sounds?" G hollered and threw the knife at Yamamoto out of anger. It missed Yamamoto by an inch. Yamamoto didn't seem to take notice.

He had a confused look on his face. "But I thought that Tsuna was going to fix it up, so what's there to worry?"

"Decimo, you're going to make the Vongola Family back to how it is now?" Giotto asked.

"Of course he is!" Gokudera snapped.

"Sawada will do the Vongola EXTREMELY GOOD!"

"Kufufufufu...He is too innocent to realise that the Vongola is fine the way it is. Then I can take control of his body and dominate the world."

Daemon looked curiously at the teen with a pineapple hair style.

"Hiiiee!"

Giotto stared at Tsuna. _He__'__ll __change __the __Vongola __so __that __it __will __walk __its __original __path... _Tsuna has only been here for about two days, but Giotto saw signs that he was the perfect person to be boss.

Like the time he noticed the cook leaving food in front of the girl's room. He told him that young master Tsunayoshi had asked him to do it because she doesn't eat well with strangers. Other times, he saw Tsuna worrying over something from every Guardian; even Mukuro, the one who threatened to possess his body. He overheard them speaking once—something about it only being a year since _then _and he wondered whether he was alright and everything. Giotto was still in the shadows as to what exactly happened, but the point was that Tsuna was worried for the mist user.

"Come on, let's start cleaning," Giotto said and sighed at the sight of the hall." He stood beside Tsuna.

Giotto "accidentally" splashed water on G, who was passing by. G scowled and flicked soap in Giotto's face, who left it there.

Tsuna was stunned by the sudden actions of his predecessor.

Giotto raised his eyebrows and continued to work. Then he paused. "The Vongola Rings."

"Huh?"

"You said that you fought over the Vongola Rings. If you won, then that means you have it. May I see?"

"O-Oh, sure!" Tsuna hastily brought his hand up to show the two rings on his ringer. Giotto blinked. He was expecting to see the original form, which was the only form he and his guardians knew about. But instead, he was seeing this…odd…form.

"What happened to it?" He snatched Tsuna's wrist to examine the ring closer. Tsuna was pulled upwards by the height difference. "My…My _ring!__"_

"What's wrong?" G demanded and ran to them. He looked at the rings. "What?"

"Th-That—that's the _Vongola Ring! _What happened?"

"You're kidding," G breathed out. "It looks cool."

"What?" Giotto said. "That's not the point! It's different!" He lifted his own to make a point. "Why is it different?"

_That _was one question Tsuna didn't want to answer.

The ring began to glow. Tsuna's eyes popped out.

"Ahaha! It's glowing again!" Yamamoto laughed as he observed Tsuna's ring. He jogged towards them.

Soon, everyone was gathered around them. Giotto let go of Tsuna's arm and backed up a step. The glow brightened and an image was projected against the wall.

"Tsuna-kun!" Giotto stiffened at the teenager who appeared on the wall, floating.

"Enma-kun! What—how?"

"Giannini has finally done something smart," Reborn observed.

Tsuna jumped in surprise. "Reborn! Don't sneak up on me!"

Reborn hit his head. "I didn't. You just weren't paying close enough attention."

"Yo, Enma!" Yamamoto waved.

"Uh, hi…" Enma was pushed aside, replaced by Ken.

"VONGOLA! What did you do to Mukuro-sama! And the stupid girl as well?" he demanded angrily. "We woke up and they were gone, _byon_!"

"Ken, calm down," Chikusa sighed from beyond the screen.

"What did you just call Juudaime?" Gokudera snarled.

Ken stuck a tongue out at him.

"Kufufu," Mukuro laughed. "Ken, Chikusa. We're fine, so you don't have to worry."

Chikusa pushed Ken to the side so the two of them were viewed through the ring. "Mukuro-sama."

"Is my invention working?" Giannini asked. The two Kokuyo members were tossed aside by three people. One was an adult and two were teenagers.

"Spanner and Shouichi-kun! What are you guys doing there?"

"Hello, Vongola," Spanner greeted cheerfully with a lollipop in his mouth.

"Tsunayoshi-kun, it's great to see that you're doing well!"

"Please, a moment!" Giotto said. "Who was that person in the beginning? Was that—?"

"Oi, oi! Get out of the way! The Shimon was here first!" Julie took over the screen and offered a salute. "Good afternoon, Primo and Guardians! Vongola Decimo as well, of course," he smirked.

"Julie-san…is everyone there?"

"We've been looking all over for you! And then your dad said something about you being transported to the past and…" Tsuna realised that his friend seemed more talkative than usual.

"D-Did something happen?"

Julie laughed and slung a care-free arm on Enma's shoulders. "This is what happens when a boy accepts candy from an inventor who hasn't tried it on a guinea pig yet. It's a hyperactive candy that'll wear off in a few minutes." Adelheid punched Julie away from Enma.

"I must be imagining things," Asari said. "I'm seeing Cozart through the air."

"This is extreme," Knuckle agreed. He passed a hand through Enma and was surprised when he felt air.

"H-Hold on! I'm getting confused!" Tsuna shouted and waved his hands which made the image fly around in the air. "Where exactly _are _you guys? How did this happen? And _who _is there?"

"There's the entire Shimon Famiglia," Enma put in with a smile.

"Sawada-dono! I'm here as well!" Basil's face popped up in front of Enma's.

"Tsuna! How are you doing? Did you miss your old man?" Iemitsu cheered. Tsuna hid his head. His father was wearing his white shirt and orange overalls…and a shovel.

"D-Dad..." Tsuna said embarrassingly.

"Reborn, you better not let them slack off there, kora!" Enma's face was again, covered and replaced by two familiar faces: Colonnello and Lal Mirch in their adult forms.

"To answer your stupid question," Lal said, "we are currently in CEDEF Headquarters, Italy. Giannini, the two brats Spanner and Irie are also here. The Shimon Famiglia, and Nono. There are others but I won't bother to name them. We are broadcasting you through the Vongola and Shimon Rings."

"The rings can do that?" Tsuna said in wonder.

"Lal, how much time has passed?" Reborn asked instead.

Lal answered a beat later. "Just two hours. The cover story is that you took them to a training camp. School is out in a few days so there's nothing to worry about on that front."

Out of the corner of his eye, the brunet noticed at Hibari was leaning outside the window with just a few hairs and Hibird showing.

"Wh-What about Nami-chuu?" Tsuna asked. "Is it doing well?"

Colonnello raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Those weaklings needed training, so it's turned into a training camp, kora!"

"NO WAY!" Tsuna yelped. _Hibari-san__'__s __going __to __kill __me! _On cue, he felt Hibari's presence thicker than before.

Lal punched Colonnello to the other side of the room and they heard a loud crash.

"Stop lying! You can't train anyone properly in the first place!" She shrugged off the rifle she had on her shoulder and shot at Colonnello, who obviously dodged it because they could hear him return fire. The rest of them took cover and Enma held the ring close to his body.

"Ah…they're at it again," he mumbled.

"Enma-kun," Tsuna said, since chaos seemed to be taking over back in the future. "Do you have a way to bring us back?"

"They were talking about something really confusing and I didn't understand."

"Now, now, Enma-kun~, it is very simple," Byakuran said and ate a marshmallow.

"B-Byakuran's there too!?"

"Yo, Tsunayoshi-kun. Basically, we can't do anything until the things on your end are ready to go~!" One of his fingers waved back and forth as he spoke and his eyes were closed with a large grin plastered on his face.

"Huh? On our end? What are you talking about?" Tsuna frowned.

"Juudaime, you don't need to understand him. He can't be trusted!" Gokudera insisted.

_He__'__s __still __saying __that __after __a __year __of __having __Byakuran __as __our __neighbour__… _Tsuna sweat-dropped. _He__'__s __changed __for __the __better, __Gokudera, _he thought in his head wistfully. _I __wish __everyone __can __see __that._

"He means that your time machine needs to be fixed before we can even try to send you guys back to this time," Spanner said. He was holding a laptop in one hand and typing quickly with the other. He turned the computer to show a replica of the white circle they used in the future. "This doesn't exist in our time, but we are trying to create it with our memories and the knowledge we have of it. Byakuran is helping out a lot. Too bad we don't have the ten-year bazooka with us, or else we could have twiddled with it and send the ten-years-later Giannini back to this time to give us a hand. This one is useless." He pointed at Giannini who pouted. "After we've constructed this, we have to find a time where the past and the future is the same, and then send you all back."

"You will never understand the concept that I would explain, so I won't bother to," a voice said. They saw a man with green hair, glasses, and a lab coat standing in the background.

"Just make sure you have the inventor from that time to fix the machine within a month. I've started the calculations for the timing. I'm almost finished and if you want to come back before next year, I'd advise you to do your best to help fix whatever was used to send you into the past." Verde let out his evil, mad scientist laugh and left the scene.

"W-Well…" Shouichi said. "That's it, I guess…" He let out a nervous laugh. Giotto and his Guardians were still staring as if they've seen a ghost.

"Ah—!" Spanner shouted. "We're breaking connection!"

"Are we able to speak to each other again?" Tsuna asked quickly. Enma tilted the Shimon Ring so that a part of his face was also showing.

"Maybe, but it took a lot of flames to make it work. About fifty percent of our strength is gone."

"Fifty_? _That's a lot!"

_What __are __they __talking __about? _The first generation family thought. Sure, they understood the flame part of it, but…ehhhh? Question marks made themselves visible all around their heads.

Spanner was saying something about can't hold on any longer and then the image fizzled and disappeared.

Awkward silence filled the air for a minute as each person thought of what do say.

"So…" Tsuna and Yamamoto said at the same time as the first generation Guardians who asked, "What the hell was _that?__"_

"U-Uh…" Tsuna gulped. Reborn shot a bullet over his head and he squeaked.

"Stop stuttering. The other famiglia bosses will already be planning on how to dethrone you if you act like that in meetings." The colour drained from Tsuna's face in an instant. Giotto understood what Reborn was talking about, but he still felt sorry for Decimo since he had such a strict tutor.

"Hai… well," Tsuna said, "Spanner and the others probably did something to Enma's ring to make our connection possible."

"That Enma…he looks like Cozart," Daemon said. "How is that possible? Cozart's dead." Tsuna's eyes showed shock and fear. Shock, they might understand, but fear? Fear of, what exactly?

_On no! I didn't even think to find out what time period we landed in! This time must be after Primo tricked Daemon and swore that oath with Shimon! Oh no…this might seriously change time…_

"H-He probably had a son or daughter?" Tsuna answered, recalling Cozart lifting a little girl into his arms back at home. Was that his daughter, or little sister, or niece, or, well, a family member?

Daemon's face darkened. Tsuna watched him carefully and noticed that Giotto was looking straight ahead but at the same time, watching Daemon's every move.

"Reborn-san, do you know what Verde was talking about?" Gokudera asked, ever so polite.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Reborn smirked. "Clean this blasted place up and I'll tell you. Meet me on the roof in two hours. If you aren't there, be ready for _training.__" _He walked away with Tsuna scurrying about, doing as his tutor ordered.

"Decimo, would you help me clean the ceiling?" Primo pointed up.

"U-Uh sure!" Tsuna said. He dropped his cloth and fished out his gloves. Giotto tilted his head to the side, wondering what was going to happen. Tsuna put on the gloves, not knowing that a few pairs of eyes were on him. Once they were on, he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. A large, orange flame licked his forehead and orange eyes opened. Giotto looked utterly shocked. The others were just the same.

_He _does _look __like __me, _Giotto thought. _Even his eyes changed colour._

Tsuna picked up the rag and held it in a glove. The X-Gloves were Version Vongola Ring at the moment, so they weren't red with thrusters which appeared when they were Version Vongola Gear. On the back of it was the blue crest where he stored his flames. Giotto collected himself and also went into Hyper Mode.

"Let's start," Giotto said. He lit his I-Gloves and flew to the top. Tsuna used soft flames to propel himself upward with one hand, since he needed the other to hold onto the rag without burning it into a crisp.

"What kind of flame is that?" Daemon wondered. G was interested in the kid now. He remembered those flames: Giotto used to wield those before he gained more power which transformed his flames into a more clear and strong type, first class.

"It's just a flame weaker than Giotto's," G said simply. Daemon nodded slowly. G noticed that everyone was staring. Then he saw the walls, floors, and table. "Get back to work!" he ordered and dragged Asari with him to the table. Everyone obeyed out of instinct.

There was so much screaming and shouting Tsuna and Giotto were glad their Cloud Guardians weren't around to see.

"Everyone, work faster!" Tsuna said calmly, with a small part of his brain worried about what Reborn would do to them, but since he was in his Hyper Dying Will Mode, it didn't show as much.

"Hai, Juudaime!" Gokudera said and doubled his speed. Ryohei practically had the entire floor cleaned before Lampo even set the broom on it. Yamamoto laughed and gave Tsuna a care-free salute before thinking, _Hm, __I __wonder __if __it __will __help __to __use __Rain __flames? __They__'__re __for __tranquility and __it__'__s _actually _water __sometimes__… _Yamamoto looked around and found a bucket. He grinned and tipped the bucket. Gokudera stopped arguing with Adult Lambo and they turned to see what made the baseball star pour all the soapy water out.

"What are you doing, baseball freak?"

Yamamoto grinned and took out his sword which was on his back. He transformed it into a real katana, which got Asarii's interest.

_Utsushi __Ame: __Duplicate __Rain, _he thought and swiped. A tidal wave appeared with the little water he had available to use and splashed it against his entire wall. After it cooled down, most of the rubbish on it was gone, wiped sparkly clean except for a few spots here and there which were a bit too stubborn.

"What the hell!" Gokudera shouted. "You got us all wet!"

"Maa, maa! At least it's faster! You won't want to keep the kid waiting!"

"Yamamoto, that's a great idea!" Tsuna commented.

"Juudaime," Gokudera muttered. "You're congratulating the baseball freak. I should have done something like that as well. I'm not worthy of being the perfect right hand man!" He knocked his forehead against the wall. "No! I have to do better than that idiot!" Ignoring his surroundings, he scrubbed and swore at the wall. He seemed to be everywhere at once and Tsuna blinked calmly.

"I'd better get back to my own cleaning," he said.

"You have interesting Guardians, Decimo," Primo said.

Tsuna smiles wryly. "So do you..." _We__'__re __their __descendants, __after __all._ Giotto smiled as if reading the brunet's mind.

* * *

><p>Two hours later, all of them were rushing to the roof led by the first generation.<p>

"Why would Reborn want to meet on the roof? There's no good footing up there," Lampo said. "If you don't watch your step, or if someone pushes you a _little, _you'll fall to your death." He shot Daemon a look. Daemon smirked. Another five minutes of running brought them up the many flights of stairs and through a door. The air in the attic was musky and lit dimly. Tsuna noticed that there were spider webs.

"A-AACHHOOO!"

"Sorry, it's very poorly cleaned up here," Giotto apologised.

"I-It's okay."

Asari pushed the trap door up and a gust of wind blew in.

"Gaaaah!" Tsuna screamed but the sound was lost in the wind when he clambered up.

"You're late." Reborn's voice travelled to them. He was seated in the only sheltered part of the roof.

"Reborn! Why did you make us come up _here?_" Tsuna complained. "We could fall and break our necks!"

"I'll protect you!" Gokudera shouted.

"Haha! This is fun, don't you think, senpai?" Yamamoto asked Ryohei. Ryohei agreed full-heartedly.

"IT'S _EXTREMELY_ WINDY UP HERE!"

Reborn said, "I chose to meet here because."

"Because _what?__"_

"The great hitman Reborn does not need a reason."

Tsuna face palmed.

"Kufufu. Arcobaleno, how do you plan on bringing us back to the future?" Mukuro asked.

"Simple. Get Talbot to fix the machine. But he's missing parts, so you'll have to go look for them."

"NO WAAAY!"

"What? But _he__'__s _responsible for bringing us here! Why does Juudaime have to find the missing components?" Gokudera protested.

Reborn turned his gaze to him. "Not only him, Gokudera. All of his Guardians including you must help find the parts. Talbot said that they're scattered all over Italy and are very rare. The traders he got them from are long dead and they've been replaced by people he doesn't know. Because he is blind, he can't go by himself."

"He doesn't even act blind!" Hibari hissed and took out his pair of tonfa. Tsuna jumped. Since when was the school prefect here!?

"True, but he is blind nonetheless. The things the traders might ask you to do could be impossible for a blind man and therefore you must go yourselves."

"Why can't the first generation go?" Gokudera asked, pointing at G.

"That's because they have to do their own work. We don't want to change time too much. What if Giotto goes off exploring when he was supposed to meet his future wife? Tsuna will never be born because of that," Reborn said, using his student as an example. Gokudera's facial expression became one of horror.

"I will never let anything happen to Juudaime! I will find all of the parts myself if I have to!" he said determinedly and then went to face Tsuna. "JUUDAIME! I PROMISE THAT I WILL NOT LET ANYTHING STOP YOU FROM BEING BORN!" Then he turned to Giotto. Tsuna and Yamamoto stopped him from screaming anything that might offend Primo. Tsuna sweatdropped. _D-Don__'__t __tell __me __he __was __about __to __tell __Primo __to __go __out __and __find __some __girls! _But knowing Tsuna and his Intuition, his guess was probably right.

They didn't belong to this time. Whatever happened because of them, even the slightest thing, could change the course of history.

"Fine, we'll do it," Tsuna said. If only he knew that he shouldn't have given in to Reborn so easily…

"Great!" Reborn said. "We'll continue to talk about this tomorrow."

"Eh?" Tsuna said. "Then why did you bring it up in the first place?"

"Who knows?" Reborn said before walking away.

"That was unexpected," Knuckle observed.

_It __was, _the entire tenth generation thought.

"Whatever," Daemon said. "I'm going down. The rest of you can march around all you like." He disappeared into the mist.

"Come on, Giotto! You have two piles of paperwork to sign for the damage Daemon has done over the past months before heading out to find the underground boxing arena."

"Oh!" Giotto exclaimed. "Alaude said he was coming, but he left for his mission!" G stopped as well.

"You're right…he actually missed out on a fight to go on a mission…"

_I __wonder __what __he __wanted __to __confirm __so __badly, _Giotto thought. _I __have __to __look __back __on __the __files __of __the __families __in __Italy. _He mentally shifted his thoughts to the back of his head, where he stored the files of allied and enemy families. Although he acted like a lazy man at times, he was still Vongola Primo, founder of the prospering Vongola Famiglia. He didn't gain that title by sitting around doing nothing. _Hm__…__there __are __only __two __that __I __can __think __of. __I__'__ll __have __to __read __up __on __the __information __I __have __on __them__… __although __they__'__re __probably __unlikely._

* * *

><p>Tsuna and the rest of his family sat in the comfy living quarters of the mansion. The couches were so plush Tsuna sank and couldn't lift himself up. Hibari was probably in his room or somewhere quiet. But Mukuro was also gone. He wouldn't put it past them to get into a fight. He just hoped that they won't kill each other and that he won't have to be held responsible for whatever happens.<p>

Gokudera went to the library to find a book he might enjoy and promised to be right back. Yamamoto and Lambo were playing question and answer about random things. Ryohei wasn't wasting any time dolly gagging and went straight to training in the middle of the carpet. That left Chrome and Tsuna.

"Boss…I'm going to look for Mukuro-sama," she murmured.

"Oh, okay," Tsuna said absentmindedly. After a bit, he dozed off with nothing to do. "I'm so boooreeed…"

"Then continue your training," Reborn said. In an instant, Tsuna was pulled by the collar of his shirt and tossed out the wide window: three stories high.

"_HIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!__"_

"You still have thirty laps on you," Reborn stated and locked the window. The baseball player lifted his head from his conversation with Lambo.

"What's up?" Yamamoto asked.

"Nothing," Reborn said. "Yamamoto, maybe you should find something better to do than play with the stupid cow." Yamamoto laughed and shrugged.

"Sure! But calling him a stupid cow isn't that nice at all…"

"You should stop calling me a stupid cow," Lambo complained. "I'm not that stupid in the future!"

"Sure you aren't. While you're at it, go to Gokudera for more training." Lambo blanched.

"You're kidding."

"I never kid." He had his gun out and shot at Lambo's feet so he danced around on the spot until the thought of running away.

"Yare, yare! You're oto serious, Reborn!" He shouted as he ran. He'd rather face Gokudera than Reborn any day!

He barged into the library out of breath. Gokudera was standing on a ladder, shifting through the topmost books. He scowled at the sight of Lambo. He pushed the wall so that the ladder would slide to the door. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"_Huff__…__huff. _Reborn said he wants you to train me…_huff__…__huff__…"_

"Phsshhht. Hell no."

"But it's _Reborn!__" _Lambo said, emphasizing Reborn's name which Gokudera didn't hear the first time, since he just found the theories of the something-only-he-would-understand-book.

His eyes widened. "Holy shit! This is the first copy! I heard that they were all burned in a fire and from protests against the author! There's not a single copy that exists in our world!" He began to flip through it and stopped.

"Wait. Did you just say Reborn-san told me to train you?" Lambo nodded slowly. Gokudera grinned. "Alright! I'll do it if Reborn-san tells me to!" He slid down the ladder and dragged Lambo into another room in the library which had a large, heavy wooden table. On it were a stack of papers and pens to use.

"Let's get started!"

Lambo groaned. Maybe coming to Gokudera wasn't such a good idea after all. He'd forgotten that every time he trained with Gokudera, he always "hit the books" first.

* * *

><p>Giotto was scanning papers and signing them one after another. For the next two hours, he saw nothing but endless sums of money and text written in scrawly handwriting. Others were requests of all sorts. He either rejected them or approved them.<p>

Look, nod, sign, put away to the left. Look, shake head, sign, put away to upper left. Look scan, nod, put away to the left. Look, scan, nod, put away to the left… Then he zoned out as he thought of what Tsuna said while they were cleaning up after the food fight. He shook his head and banged it on the desk. _Come on, Giotto, just forget everything you heard and it'll be fine...just forget everything you heard about the future...come on..._ He groaned. _It's useless...ugh. Too much information's going through my head! I can't take it anymore!_

The blonde put down the pen he was using and stretched. He took off the cloak he wore and laid it on the chair. He walked around a bit and then remembered about the confirmation Alaude wanted to make. He frowned and walked to a bookcase. He lit the Vongola Ring and inserted it into an innocent looking hole. The bookcase lowered into the ground and stopped. Behind it was a walk-in closet filled to the top with files. He scanned the rows until he found what he was looking for in the V section. He pulled out the file he playfully made with the Vongola. At the time, he thought it was useless, since _he _was the Vongola, so there was no point into making a file for his family. Then G told him that it can be used as future reference for the next generation of the family and such.

Now, he took it out and walked back to his desk. The bookcase rose at its own will, masking the secrets behind it. Giotto subconsciously thought, _why __are __all __the __secret __hiding __places __behind __bookshelves?_

He opened the file and paused on the first page. There was an image of him and his Guardians somewhere in the gardens. It wasn't a pleasure picture, but they were all smiling—except for Alaude—even Daemon had that smirk of his on his face.

Below were the written words, _VONGOLA __FAMIGLIA _and their names. There was a brief description of them and he flipped to the next page. This one was solely dedicated to him, listing his description. There was, though, nothing on his fighting abilities or weak points. This file could easily be picked up by an enemy if they weren't careful. On he went to look at the other six pages. He stopped at the last. It had the picture of a teenager with black hair and a scowl plastered on his face which could also be mistaken for a sneer.

Ricardo, his cousin's son: his only heir.

He never really liked that boy for some reason. His Hyper Intuition never failed to warn him when the kid was around. _But __he __can__'__t __be _that _bad, _Giotto thought. _He __just __needs __to __find __a __way __in __life __that__'__s __not __so__…__I __don__'__t __know__…depressing__?_

Ricardo lived in France at the moment. Giotto was pretty sure that the boy knew about the Vongola, and that made Giotto uncomfortable for some reason. He shook it away and scanned the page for what he was looking for.

_Ricardo__'__s __studying __in __France __at __the __moment. __He__'__s __most __likely __also __fooling __around. __Perhaps __Alaude __went __there __to __see __how __he__'__s __doing? __Why __on __earth __would __he __do __that? __He __said __he __had __to __confirm__…__to__…__confirm __that __he i__s __still __in __France? __Unless __he __thinks __that __Ricardo__'__s __planning __on __playing th__e __rebellious __child__…__the __extreme __type__…__like __trying __to __dethrone __his __relative __from __the __Vongola? _Giotto felt a chill shiver down his spine at the thought. _He__'__s __just __a __boy. __He __can__'__t __do __anything, _Giotto decided in his mind. _Yet, _his Hyper Intuition put in quietly.

Giotto grumbled and put the file back. As he did, he noticed other things and got carried away with reading up on the information Alaude updated from time to time. Another two hours passed without him realising it. The door slammed open and Giotto jumped in surprise. He snapped the folder shut and jumped out of the room. He sighed when he saw that it was only Ryohei.

"Primo! Pink Octopus-Head asked me to tell you that we're having supper in two hours!"

"Alright," Giotto said slowly and choked a bit as he tried to hold in his laughter. His twitching mouth threatened to give him away.

"Are you extremely alright?" Ryohei asked concerned.

Giotto waved. He was pretty sure that if he spoke he won't stop himself from laughing. His shoulders shook as he slowly sat down and held his face in his hands. Ryohei walked in quickly.

"I NEED TO BRING YOU TO THE HOSPITAL! YOU MIGHT BE HAVING A STROKE!"

"What! What are you talking about—HAHAHA!" Giotto burst out. Ryohei had one of Primo's arms over his shoulders and dragged him out accordingly.

"I'm not having a stroke! God, I don't even think I'm considered _old_ enough to have one!" He was holding in his laughter so that he could start a conversation properly which meant his stomach was killing him and he was too weak to stop Ryohei.

"You have to _extremely _see a doctor!" Ryohei shouted. "I KNOW! LET'S FIND KNUCKLE! _KNUUUCKLE!__"_ Giotto cringed at the scream and wondered how _anyone _can be that loud.

Footsteps approached at a hurried pace. Around the corner came G, Asari, and Knuckle. They gasped for breath and ran to them

"What happened?" G asked anxiously. He took his friend from Ryohei and lay in on the ground. He did a quick body check for injuries before standing up. Knuckle also frowned.

"What's wrong with him?" Giotto was holding his breath and shaking slightly, thinking of "Pink Octopus-Head" and how G would react if he said it out loud.

G took another look at Giotto and rolled his eyes. He recognised the symptoms.

"Forget about him. He's just trying not to laugh. Che. Get up, you fool!" G aimed a kick at Giotto's abdomen which made him cough and laugh out loud. "He's hopeless," G announced. "The only way for this to stop is to wait until he doesn't find whatever it is funny anymore or when he has to be serious."

Giotto wiped tears from his eyes and smiled up at G humorously.

"Don't worry about it…G…" Giotto stifled a laugh and that was when G realised that the joke must have been about him. His vein popped out and his eyebrow twitched violently. He removed the cigarette from his mouth and held it between two fingers.

"Giotto…" he said dangerously through gritted teeth. Giotto looked at G. His eyes jolted slightly and he began to laugh again, lying on the floor. G scowled. "You're supposed to be an adult!" He roared and pulled Giotto upright. Every time he looked at G, he would start laughing. He let go of Giotto's shirt front and scoffed.

"Okay, I give up!" He stormed away down another hall. Asari and Knuckle looked at each other, then at the retreating storm and shrugged. Giotto finally calmed down after G left although it took him another ten minutes.

"Come on, Giotto," Knuckle said and pulled him to his feet. Giotto grinned.

"Thanks."

"What happened?" Ryohei wondered.

"It was just something you said," Giotto mumbled and smiled weakly. "Before you all came, I've never heard such interesting insults before."

"Oh…" Ryohei said. "I EXTREMELY HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, BUT THANKS!"

Giotto chuckled. "Well, I'll get back to work before G comes and becomes a royal pain. See you all in…two hours?"

"YEAH!" Ryohei began to jog. He decided that with such a large mansion, he could do his afternoon jogs indoors and explore at the same time.

He passed by many luxurious rooms but didn't stop to admire them because he was concentrating on doing his run. Maids and butlers squished themselves against the wall no matter what they were doing at the time to avoid the tornado passing by.

This passed another hour. He was forced to stop when a dozen servants were moving the ruins of one part of the mansion which was destroyed by one of Giotto's Guardians. As he stopped, he noticed heavy breathing behind him. He turned and beamed.

"SAWADA! YOU'RE EXTREMELY HERE!" He yelled in Tsuna's face, who fell to the ground.

"Oooff!" He groaned and rolled onto his stomach. Ryohei stood over him. He thought for a moment.

"You look _extremely _tired."

"I am," Tsuna sighed. _Finally, __he __realises __something __right! _Tsuna thought.

"YOU SHOULD TRAIN WITH ME SO YOU WON'T BECOME EXTREMELY TIRED NEXT TIME!"

"HIIEE! NO WAY!" Tsuna cries as Ryohei pulls him along for an hour run. "Onii-san! Let go of me! I'm already exhausted from climbing the wall!" Tsuna begged. "NOO! HEEEEEEEEELP!"

* * *

><p>At dinner, Primo was deep in thought as they were served food. When he finally thought of looking up, he noticed two missing figures.<p>

"Where are Decimo and his Sun Guardian?" He wondered aloud. Gokudera was jittering his knee impatiently, worried about his boss. When Giotto voiced the question, Gokudera couldn't take it anymore. He stood up, making the chair move back with a groan.

"I'm going to look for Juudaime."

He walked to open the door. Just as he does so, a certain brunet topples in. Thanks to Gokudera's quickness in recognising his boss, Tsuna was caught. Ryohei walked in afterwards.

"Juudaime! What happened to you?"

"Haha! Tsuna, it looks like you went for a run, didn't you?" Yamamoo chuckled.

"Ugh…someone save me…" Tsuna mumbled. He managed to change his clothes before letting Ryohei pull him to the dining hall which was cleaned by them.

"Ooh! It was _extremely _fun!" Most of the people occupying the room sweat-dropped, minus Hibari, who was't even present.

After a quick dinner, G ordered Giotto to take take a nap until it was time to go.

"But G!"

"You were probably working yourself to death this afternoon, taking no time to rest. I don't want you to faint in the middle of battle again!"

"But that was six years ago!"

"No," G said firmly. Yamamoto whispered to Asari, "Doesn't this scene look like a mother scolding her child?" Asari laughed silently at the truth of it.

"I heard that!" Giotto and G shot at the two Rain Guardians. Everyone laughed.

"Nufufu. Primo, I think you should listen to him for once. I don't want to be the one to carry your dead body back."

"Oh, shut up!"

Reborn walked in and kicked Tsuna until he woke.

"Ahhhh…kaa-san…five more minutes…" he mumbled. Giotto had to hand it to his descendant to withstand that much pain and stay asleep.

"Someone bring him back to his room. It's pitiful to see the Vongola Boss sleeping on the table."

"HAI, REBORN-SAN!" Gokudera said and lifted Tsuna bridal style and carried him off at the speed of light.

"Yare, yare…there goes Young Vongola again," Lambo said and relaxed on his chair, his hunger content for the moment.

"Mukuro-sama…will Boss be alright?" Chrome asked.

"Kufuf. No need to worry, Nagi. Nothing will happen to him in the care of his right-hand man."

* * *

><p><strong>Midnight<strong>

The entire family was standing in the inside of the main entrance. Giotto was in his cloak. G was armed with his gun and archery. Hibari just stood there and yawned. Ryohei was doing some stretches. The rest of them watched.

"Are you sure you don't want any of us to go with you?" Tsuna asked. Giotto smiled.

"It shouldn't take too many people. The four of us and twenty men are enough."

"Take care," Asari said with full confidence in them.

"Oi, Turf-Top! Make sure you aren't too loud and give everyone away!" Gokudera said.

"WHAT WAS THAT, OCTOPUS-HEAD!"

"Oh forget it!"

"Onii-san, don't go too wild out there," Tsuna said worriedly. He didn't want to attract Hibari's attention but… "H-Hibari-san…c-could you not…er…bite…too hard…?" He stuttered.

"Hn. I bite whomever I want, and how hard I want, Herbivore." He turned and walked out to meet the chilly air. The doors closed behind them. Giotto explained to the two teens, "When we come back, we'll be using a side entrance."

"Hmm!" Ryohei said in understanding, or what Giotto hoped was.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-15th**_


	5. A Night out Boxing! Wait, WHAT?

**Chapter Five**

Once they left, the family resided to the living quarters to do their night activities. They would wait until they come back home safely. Tsuna used this time to catch up on some sleep while Lambo and Lampo played board games.

They sat on the soft, carpeted floor with a table between them and couches to their backs. The table was short and reached their , Asari and Yamamoto joined them.

Gokudera had his nose hidden in a book, sitting across from Tsuna. Daemon was goofing off, making small illusions here and there and not really targeting anyone.

Tsuna turned his head to watch the crack between the closed curtains. He could see the shape of the town with the moonlight, but not a single candle, lamp, or light was on. Strange.

"Reborn?" Tsuna turned and remembered that Reborn wasn't in the room. Gokudera looked up from his book.

"What is it, Juudaime?" He asked.

"Even though it's in the middle of the night…shouldn't there be at least a few lights on? Or street lamps? They have those in this period, right?" Tsuna's history was rusty at best so he didn't know what was invented and what wasn't. Gokudera stood up and lifted the curtain to look out. Everyone else continued on with what they were doing.

"It's nothing," Lampo drawled out as he took his turn. "Sometimes on random days, they just sleep like the dead. Nothing to worry about."

"Don't worry over them," Daemon said with a sigh. Tsuna's Hyper Intuition still tugged at him even though everyone was comforting him. Sleep quickly dulled his mind as he yawned and closed his eyes. Gokudera gently laid a blanket over his boss and continued reading.

* * *

><p><strong>HALF AN HOUR LATER<strong>

"Nufufu. Is anyone other than me bored out of their minds?" Daemon asked.

"Haha! Nope! This game is addicting!" Yamamoto laughed and moved a piece. "I win!"

Lampo groaned.

Mukuro looked at Daemon lazily. "As a matter of fact, yes. Kufufu. I've been bored for a while…" He and Daemon exchanged evil grins. They looked at Tsuna, the remaining boss in the house. He was still sound asleep, which meant no one could bother them. _Not,_ Daemon thought, _that __he __can __stop __us __anyways. _He raised his weapon and stood up. Chrome watched them nervously.

"But…" she said innocently, "Mukuro-sama…Vongola Primo told us not to ruin his mansion, right?" Daemon and Mukuro scowled at the mention of Vongola Primo.

"We'll be careful to not ruin anything. Anyone who destroys a single piece of furniture is the loser. Kufufufufufufu."

"Nufufufufu, that is something I can agree on. I shall make you destroy something and claim the victory for myself," Daemon said evilly. Asari looked up with a stern look in his eyes.

"No fighting in the mansion." Daemon frowned at the Rain Guardian.

"There should be no fighting at all," Knuckle said. Daemon's frown deepened.

"What else are we supposed to do?" Daemon demanded. "I want to see how it turned out and they refused to let us go. If we went, we won't be disturbing you at all! We could just go there and beat some…" He stopped himself. A mischievous smile slowly crept upon his and Mukuro's face.

"Nufufufu…"

"Kufufufuf…" They grinned at each other. "Daemon…we'll leave that competition for later."

"Nufuf. Definitely," he replied.

"Huh?" Yamamoto said, puzzled. "What are they talking about?"

Lampo glanced at Daemon and sighed. "His blood lust is probably getting to high. And he can't sit through an hour without torturing something. So, my guess is that they're going to go to the town to beat the heck out of the gamblers."

"Don't try to stop me, kufufuf," Mukuro said. "I'm going now."

"Hey, are you guys going to play some new game?" Yamamoto asked. Lampo rolled his eyes. Asari looked at Yamamoto in disbelief. He had a feeling that Yamamoto knew the mafia was no game, but why was he still acting as if everything else _was _one?

Mukuro grinned. "Oya? You want to join? It'll be fun, kufufu…" It will be fun to torture some people, is what Mukuro meant. Now knowing that, Yamamoto smiled and stands up.

"I'll go with you! Tsuna, Gokudera, wanna come?"

"You idiot. Who's gonna guard the mansion if we're all gone? Besides, I only go where Juudaime goes!"

Yamamoto shrugged. It was more fun to have more people, but he can't force Gokudera to unless Tsuna goes.

"Tsuna, do you want to come with us?" he asked, loud enough to wake his other friend. There was no need, since he was already stirring.

"Hn…?"

"Do you want to come with us to play a game in town?" Tsuna sat up bleary eyed and watched the three illusionists walk out the door and Yamamoto waiting for his reply.

After hearing his friend's words, Tsuna inhaled to let out his trademark shriek but instead let out a painful howl. "_REBORN!_" He was currently on the floor with his arms twisted backwards in a painful way by none other than his tutor. Reborn cocked an eyebrow.

"Dame-Tsuna and Primo's Guardians are going to go to the town to help Primo."

"What?" Tsuna screamed. "I don't want to go!"

"Me neither!" Lampo and Lambo cried in unison, showing the cowardly side of them.

_Maybe they need backup_. "We shouldn't have left them alone. What if something happens to them? I'll help them for three minutes!" Knuckle declared.

"Go on, Dame-Tsuna!" Reborn kicked Tsuna directly into the path of Mukuro, Chrome, Daemon, Yamamoto, Asari, and Knuckle. Knuckle also pulled Lampo along, who tried to grab hold of Lambo in a sorry attempt to stay put, which caused them to also stumble into the rampage. Gokudera shot up.

"JUUDAIME! Stop, you're crushing Juudaime!" None of them heard him as they ran, pushing Tsuna with them as well. He was bumped from one place to another. Gokudera ran after them and saw glimpses of Tsuna's arms in the air at one point, then his hair, his leg, and screams. He was being tossed around! He had to save him. Soon, Reborn was the only one left in the room. He smirked and decided to follow along.

"Hiiieeee! Stop!"

"Kufufu. Decimo…what are you doing here?" Mukuro asked as he saw Tsuna's face pass by.

"It's not like I wanted to be here!" he screamed back.

"Nufufuf," Daemon chuckled. "I'm going to kill more than you," he taunted Mukuro, who grinned in return.

"Kufuf. I see that you are challenging me. Challenge accepted."

"HIIIIEE! NO KILLING! NO KILLING!"

"Shut up," Mukuro and Daemon said.

"You're not going to kill a single person!" He shouted as they reached the main floor. They filed through a side door, surprising a few servants who came out to find the commotion. To their surprise, their masters and their guests were rushing out in a break neck pace.

"Maa, maa, you should listen to Tsuna!" Yamamoto advised with a frown of his own.

They passed the front gates in three minutes and were now making their way to the town. The Rain Guardian stopped them.

"Why don't we take the horses?" Asari asked. "It will take at least about half an hour to get there if we continue to run this fast. But we'll be too tired by the time we reach there."

"Those who want to take horses can take them," Mukuro growled, impatient to get going. He was itching to torture some people. He continued on his way with Daemon and Yamamoto after him. Tsuna was relieved with the notion of taking a horse instead of running all the way. Although he had never ridden one before, it should be easier than running all the way, right?

"Tsuna! What are you waiting for?" Reborn used Leon as a hammer to toss him into the air and land on the ground slightly in front of Yamamoto who stopped to help his friend stand.

"Hahaha! Tsuna, you want to run instead of riding horse?"

"N-No! Reborn—!" Yamamoto grinned, not waiting for the answer as he pulled Tsuna along.

"Come on, Tsuna!"

"Hiiiee! Why does my life have to be like this all the time?" Beside them rode Gokudera who was expertly riding his black mare.

"JUUDAIME!" He shouted with worry. Asari and Knuckle rode right after. Chrome shared a horse with Knuckle, with her skirt making her ride side-saddle. Lampo brought up the rear with Lambo right after. Because of Lambo's inexperience with horses, his had to be tied to Lampo's, which annoyed him greatly.

"I can't believe you pulled in the great Lampo into your scheme!" he coward of the group said.

* * *

><p>"Ryohei, you <em>do<em> remember where it is located, right?" Giotto asked the boxer who grinned confidently.

"Of course I do! It's extremely right there!" He "whispered". G rolled his eyes and Hibari growled in frustration. He was reaching his limit and he _needed _to bite a few hundred herbivores to death or else he won't be satisfied. He walked ahead of them, looking for anything that might resemble a secret entrance.

"Ah hah!" Ryohei exclaimed.

"SSHHHHH!" Giotto and G say and run back to Ryohei. Hibari stood to the side with his pair of tonfa out.

"I remember where it is. It's this way! Follow me!" Giotto inwardly groanned as he, G, and their men chased after Ryohei _again._The last time he said those words, they ended up in a garbage dump.

"It's here!" Ryohei pointed excitedly at a door in a dark alley. Giotto walked up to it curiously. He sensed that there were two people on the other side.

"Ryohei, did Alfio knock in a certain way before entering?" He asked. Ryohei nodded.

G narrowed his eyes. "He might get it wrong, Giotto," he warned. Giotto had full confidence in Ryohei from the looks of the boxer's eyes.

The man opened the door and Ryohei greeted him cheerfully. He recognised Ryohei as the young man who defeated any opponent in his path. They let him in immediately, knowing that he will earn them a lot of money. What they _weren__'__t_ expecting to see was Giotto, G, a boy, and twenty men behind them.

"Wh-Why are the Vongola with you?" one asked Ryohei, obviously frightened. "Vongola P-Primo and his right-hand man! A-And their guards as well? What's going on?"

Hibari growled menacingly. "Don't mix me up with that group of herbivores." He clubbed the two with a tonfa. He frowned. They were too easy to defeat. He needed more. Ryohei stared at the two fallen people and shrugged.

"I didn't know that you needed to show them your power to be allowed in!" He exclaimed. "Oh well. FOLLOW ME TO THE RING!" He ran off, letting his boxing mind lead him to more boxing. Hibari ran right after him with his prefect jacket hanging on his shoulders. Hibird flew beside his master. Giotto and G stood there, bewildered by how easy that was and that they didn't even have to do anything. Before they even knew it, screams erupted from deep within. Giotto had an alert expression on his face while G scoffed.

"Maybe that kid who looks a lot like Alaude is helpful after all."

Ryohei led the way into the crowded boxing arena and grinned like a maniac. This was where he belonged. The cheers, the sound of boxing, punches, yells—

"I will bite you all to death for crowding and being a nuisance to me." No one heard Hibari which was _not _in any words, fine by him. His tonfa raised and came down on someone's head. The drunken man was instantly knocked out. The man who he collapsed against glared at the fallen one and then looked up at Hibari. He shied away and tried to back up. The crowd didn't let him do that and he was fitfully punished for glaring at the school prefect.

The second man Hibari bit had a friend; the friend charged at the teen, thinking of giving him a lesson for harming man number two. Hibari tripped him and beat him up. The crowd furthest from the ring noticed the commotion of their gambling mates slowly going down one by one. A few of them grumbled about them disturbing their enthusiasm, broke their empty beer glasses and lunged at the two. Ryohei stopped watching the boxing match and fought off his attackers.

"This is _extreme!__" _He shouted to Hibari.

"Don't get in my way, Herbivore," Hibari growled at Ryohei. He glared at the next person he faced, who dropped the beer bottle.

"H-HE'S ALAUDE! RUN!" With that name said out loud, a silence hung in the air. People, even the ones in the ring, squinted though the dim light and tried to see whether or not that was indeed Alaude, Vongola's Cloud Guardian. The light stopped them from seeing the colours too clearly so they couldn't tell the black from the blond. They saw the boy. He looked younger than Alaude, but the light plays tricks on the eyes. Besides, the majority of them were on drugs or drunk. They saw the bodies lying around this Alaude. They saw the similar hair style though it seemed to be flatter. They also saw the murderous gaze which stared right back. The atmosphere turned cold.

That was enough for them. They ran.

"Come on, G, before they do too much harm. We have to find the ring leader." Giotto said no more as they felt more than heard footsteps running their way. Giotto's Hyper Intuition told him to get out and away from the doorway although he didn't know why.

"G…I have a feeling that we should…leave."

"Huh?"

"Let's go!" Giotto pulled his friend away from the door and a moment later, men came running out chased by an angry Hibari who had a scary looking smile on his face. His the pair of tonfa were already bloody as he bit more people to death. Giotto activated his flames and took part of this battle. They fought back surprisingly well. Most of them were boxers themselves, but nothing they couldn't handle. The problem was that there were so many of them.

"EXTREME! TRAINING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT IS REFRESHING!" He roars as a bullet whizzed by. He knocked out the man who shot the gun and did the same to one with a butcher knife. Then he came face to face with Alfio.

"ALFIO! IT'S BEEN A WHILE! ARE YOU MY NEXT OPPONENT? I'm looking forward to it!" Alfio stared at Ryohei in shock. It was this teenager who brought havoc upon his business?

"Which side are you on? Who's famiglia are you with?" he demanded with an uppercut. Ryohei dodged it and punched Alfio in the face. He stumbled back two steps.

"Family?" Ryohei said. "I guess I'm with the Vongola team then!" Alfio gasped through his mouth. _He__'__s __with __the __VONGOLA? __I __brought __a __Vongola __kid __into __the __ring? __Oh __my __God! _He did his best to avoid Ryohei's hits but still ended up unconscious within three minutes. Giotto spotted Ryohei beating up Alfio and made his way to him to help out. But apparently, he wasn't needed because Alfio, the big bulky guy, was on the floor with drool coming out the side of his mouth.

"Ryohei, are you alright?" Giotto asked.

Ryohei grinned."I'm extremely fine!"

"Herbivores. Get out of my way," Hibari stated. Giotto turned around. A line of bodies lay behind the prefect in a bloody mess.

"You went too far," Giotto said.

Hibari hn'ed and walked past Giotto and Ryohei to get the remaining two hundred or so. Giotto let him pass.

"Primo!" Someone shouted. "A group of ten people are coming our way! Half of them are on horseback while the other is running!" The man shot someone's arm as he reported. Giotto winced inwardly.

"Thanks for telling me. They're not enemies, so don't bother them."

"Oh…okay…yes, sir!"

Giotto turned back to his fight with a frown shown on his face. He told them to stay home, didn't he? When they came to hearing distance, he called, "What are you all doing here?"

"Kufufu. You think that we'll stay there when all the fun is out here?" Mukuro asked darkly. Daemon chuckled as he stabbed someone's leg. The man was just about to stupidly charge at him.

"Hay, everyone! I didn't know that you were here as well!" Yamamoto waved at Giotto and Ryohei. Ryohei punched the air.

"YOU'RE ALL HERE! YOSH! LET'S FIGHT SOME ENEMIES TO THE EXTREME!" Yamamoto laughed and looked around. He was slightly shocked at the sight of all those unconscious/perhaps dead men littered on the floor. He frowned.

"HIIIEE! What did you do here?" Tsuna screamed. His brown eyes widened considerably as he watched Hibari bite down another guy twice his side. Then he glanced at Daemon who was about to whack someone on the head. Tsuna knew that if that ever hit a head, the person would instantly die. He ran to them, changing into Hyper Mode half way. He had his gloves on as he stopped the sceptre from landing. The other man also had a gun, so Tsuna knocked him out with nothing else to do. He let go of Daemon's weapon and put the man down gently.

"Daemon, you could have killed him."

The mist user scowled at the aura being released by the young boss. No mere _child _should be able to have even the slightest hint of a boss' aura. Not this scrawny kid, not _anyone._

"You think that you can stop me?" Daemon sneered.

"I can't," Tsuna agreed steadily, his orange eyes meeting Daemon's.

"But I can." Daemon turned to see his own boss standing there. "Daemon, I've told you time and time again to not kill anyone unless you have to. Please listen to me." Giotto waited for Daemon's answer as G punched the enemies trying to sneak up on Primo, whose attention was all on Daemon.

"Primo," Daemon muttered. "Always the softie." Giotto gave Daemon one of his smiles.

Daemon sighed. "Fine. I won't kill them." Tsuna and Giotto instantly saw how broad that promise was. When Daemon saw their "…Really?" expression, he rolled his eyes. "I won't make them lose their minds, limbs, or lives. Happy?" He said lightly with wide, innocent eyes. Mukuro chuckled.

"Kufufu. Daemon, it looks like you're going to lose our bet."

Tsuna turned to his own Guardian. "Mukuro…"

"Kufufuf. Tsunayoshi. You don't need to lecture me. I already know how naïve you are." With that, he turned away and "knocked" someone out after casting a few gruesome illusions. Tsuna stared after him. _What__…__he__…__actually __listened __to __me__… _if he weren't in Hyper Mode, Tsuna would be doing the happy dance by now.

"Don't stand there like an idiot, Dame-Tsuna," Reborn said from a roof. Tsuna looked up calmly at his tutor.

"Ah," was his only reply before zipping away. They had somehow moved away from the houses and were fighting in a plain where no innocent bystanders could get hurt.

"Why are you here?" Giotto asked Mukuro as he froze someone's finger which was just about to pull a trigger.

"Kufuf. Like I said. We got bored of waiting for you to come back."

"We weren't gone for _that _long," G growled as he shot another man without even looking. It hit the man's arm. Hopefully, the idiot would be smart and get medical attention.

"Oh yeah, what's going on?" Yamamoto asked as he dodged a punch from someone. His Shigure Kintoki was in its bag, where he kept it when he wasn't using it.

"These people go to an underground boxing arena. It's illegal and they harm a lot of those who don't pay up. Some are even on Alaude's list of wanted murderers."

That was enough to get Yamamoto serious. He took life seriously after Tsuna saved his. He took out his katana and began to officially join the fight.

* * *

><p>A little while after, the officials came. They stood frozen in shock at the sight of around two hundred people lying around on the floor unconscious. Then they watched Giotto and his family come together. Tsuna and the rest tried to keep their heads down to avoid more confusion. Mukuro and Chrome simply disappeared. After the police thanked Giotto and the rest of the Vongola Family, albeit reluctantly, they took in all the men into custody.<p>

"Did you all run down here?" Giotto asked.

"Yeah…more or less…"

"Huh. Didn't you see the carriage that was in the stables?" He asked.

"P-Primo…did you just say that…that we could have…have used the carriage…instead of…_running __all __the __way __here?__" _Tsuna looked ready to collapse.

G barked out laughing at his expression. Gokudera scowled at G for making fun of Juudaime. They got into a heated discussion as a plain carriage which could fit six people arrived with the head butler driving it. Four horses were pulling the carriage quietly.

"Juudaime, let's ride the carriage," Gokudera said. Tsuna stared at the still dark sky. There was a shade brighter than before although he didn't know how that was possible. It was after all, around one or two in the morning.

* * *

><p>"Now that you're all up..." Reborn said.<p>

"I want to sleep," Lambo complained. Reborn shot him a glare. He hid behind Tsuna which was useless.

They were all in the mansion by now but Reborn won't let any of them leave the area until he was finished talking.

"I will tell you about your mission." Everyone perked up at this. Reborn smirked. "The first thing you have to do is trade for gold flelks."

Tsuna asked dumbly, "What are…gold felks?" He has never heard of gold flelks before.

"Gold FLELKS." They turned. Talbot was at the top of the banister, leaning down to them. Reborn smirked beneath his fedora. "Let's go to the meeting room."

Talbot waited at the top of the stairs until they sounded to be a metre away. Then he gestured to the hall saying, "After you, Primo."

Giotto nodded. "Thanks." He led them into the meeting room—the same one that they met just two days before the future found them. He sat at the head of the table with his Guardians on one side. Tsuna made a move to sit on Giotto's other side but Reborn kicked him bulls-eye into the seat at the other end.

"Reborn! What was that for?" Tsuna asked after regaining his balance. His hands were nervously griping both arms of the chair, his feet flat on the ground. He sat straight with fear in his eyes as his tutor stared at him. Then he relaxed as Reborn looked away.

"Decimo, when there is a meeting between bosses, the other boss sits at the other end of the table," Giotto said. "It has something to do with equality and respect and procedures and culture and…" he muttered, more to himself than to Tsuna. A drop of sweat rolled down Tsuna's cheek.

"With your hands _on_ the table, not under them," Reborn added. He was standing behind Tsuna to that he could easily reach down and hit his student whenever it was called for. Jokes; no, that wasn't it. As the one training the future boss, he was responsible for advising him during meetings which automatically placed him behind Tsuna. On Tsuna's right side sat Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, Lambo, Mukuro, Chrome, and an empty chair. Hibari leaned against the door with his arms crossed over his chest with his head tilted downwards as if he were sleeping.

"Hibari, sit," Reborn ordered. He looked up.

"I don't take orders from you."

"Sit and you get to fight me when we go back." Hibari was in the chair before anyone could say 'Namimori'. Giotto sat ridged with the angry, heated prefect right beside his left. His Guardians sat similarly to Tsuna's.

Talbot stood beside Giotto, as the one who would explain to them what the meeting is about.

"Now, back to the beautiful gold flelks," he said. "It is something inventors use. You don't need to know how, why, for what, or where. All you need to do is bring back six gold flelks."

"What are they though?" Yamamoto asked. "I have never heard of them before."

"That's because it's something that only the craziest inventors such as myself would use." Talbot gave them a crooked grin.

"Where can we find these gold flelks?" Tsuna asked curiously. He had no idea how they looked or their nature, but they sounded interesting.

"They are thin gold pieces about the size of your palm. They are soft and flexible when heated. They will keep that temperature unless it is in contact with something hotter. It won't get colder which is why you need to be careful of how you handle it."

"How the hell are we supposed to bring it back if we might ruin it by holding it?" Gokudera growled.

"As far as I know, they are created in the earth; the soil, that is. When you trade it in for whatever request, you should be given a tin box. That box _must _be filled with the same soil the gold flelks were in. Soil on the bottom, put in a piece of flelk, put a good layer of soil on top, and put in another flelk, and continue. Make sure that the top and bottom has plenty of soil.

"The tin prevents anything to warm or cold to ruin the flelks so make sure it's _tin.__"_

Tsuna nodded slowly trying to remember. With him, he'll most likely forget. He glanced at Gokudera. He was taking notes.

"WHERE ARE WE GOING TO GET THIS STUFF?" Ryohei asked.

Talbot tapped his cane and thought deeply. "It's…hm…it's in…ah. No…? Hmph…It's escaped my mind." He mumbled under his breath incoherently. "Ah! I remember. That old man was in Termini Imerese the last time I heard of him. Termini, in a little house at the corner of _Erculea _and _Via __Bagni _streets…or somewhere around there." Gokudera narrowed his eyes. Termini, huh? He visited that town once. _I __wonder __if __they __have __any __UMA __sightings__…__never __mind __that. __Juudaime __and __I __need __to __find __these __gold __flelks!_

"When was the last time you were there?" Gokudera asked suspiciously.

"Ten years ago. The man's long dead but someone's taken his place."

"How are you so sure?" Giotto asked.

"Because I've asked around," Talbot said impatiently.

"Where is Termini?" Tsuna pronounced the word carefully. Reborn glowered.

"Dame-Tsuna…"

"EEEP!" Reborn pulled his ear and twisted it.

"Didn't I teach you geography? Yes, I did. I _told _you to memorize all the cities and towns in Italy, didn't I? Or _course _I did." He didn't wait for Tsuna to reply.

_But __most __of __the __time __you __were __punching __me __like __a __sand __bag! _Tsuna thought in his head and gulped when Reborn glared harder. He half thought that he accidentally said it out loud.

"P-Please—Please don't shoot…"

"I'll leave that for later," Reborn promised. He let go of Tsuna's ear. He rubbed it gently.

"Juudaime…are you alright?" Gokudera asked anxiously.

"I'm fine, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna winced and smiled. He looked back to the table to find the middle wooden rectangular square being lifted by G and Yamamoto. Beneath was a map of Sicily, where the Vongola Mansion was located. Giotto pointed (to some part on the map). He rolled up his sleeves so they won't get caught.

"So…we're here, and Palermo's over there…" he used the finger to trace a line from Vongola Mansion's location to Palermo, the capital city of Sicily. He then tapped the name Termini, which was slightly to the right. "There's Termini! Hm. Not very far from our location; you'll have to go tomorrow morn—hm…better yet, leave today after breakfast. It will take you at least two days to get there on land.

"Two days?" Tsuna groaned. "Hang on…we're so close to the water," he observed. He pointed to the location where they were at. Giotto smiled.

"Yes, indeed we are. So, you can either travel inland, or on water. Which would you prefer?" Tsuna bit his lip.

Reborn answered for him. "Water. They'll go by water. It's faster with ships than travelling over land through mountains and small towns."

"Haha! This will be fun!"

"If you're taking a ship…you have to take in the wind into consideration. If you're going against it, it will take you double the time to get there. And it depends on which ship you'll be going on which isn't a problem, since you'll be using Vongola's money and we have a lot." Giotto said.

"But Giotto," G argued, "the enemy families might wonder why a ship sailing under the Vongola is out at sea when all of us are still here." Giotto sighed.

"True enough, G. I should have thought of that earlier." Tsuna nodded off but was jerked back awake because of Reborn's scary aura. Giotto continued, "You'll have to take a normal one then."

"A…a normal…one?" Tsuna muttered. "What's a _normal _one?" He jumped when Gokudera slammed his hand on the table. He had his eyebrows knitted together and his hand curled into a fist.

"I would have demanded that Juudaime have the best transportation…but if it concerns the safety of Juudaime…I think that economy class is better for us all."

"I will not board a ship with a bunch of herbivores," Hibari growled.

"Then we'll take first class!" Gokudera growled back.

"First class…" Lampo said. "What the hell…what does a class got to do with ships?" G nudged the Lightning Guardian's head roughly.

"_First __Class, __you __dope. __High __Class__…__private __quarters__…__fancy __meals__…__is __it __going __into __your __brain?__" _G said in Italian. Lampo grimaced and rubbed his head.

"Yare, yare, you seem to be hit a lot," Lambo laughed at Lampo. Gokudera's eyebrow twitched.

"Shut up, you stupid cow! I have no time to deal with your annoyance!" He punched Lambo over his head.

"OW! Bakadera! Watch who you're hitting! I'm older than you!" Lambo shouted back and kicked Gokudera's knee. He howled.

"Shaddup you brat! You can't beat me in a fight in a hundred years! You aren't actually older than me in the first place!" He raised his fist to Lambo's face.

"Maa, maa! Calm down, Gokudera!" Yamamoto held his friend back. A drop of sweat rolled down his face as he was also screamed at.

"OCTOPUS-HEAD! YOU MUST EXTREMELY CALM DOWN SO THAT WE CAN PREPARE TO GO!" Ryohei screamed and stood up as well.

"Could everyone sit down, please?" Giotto asked but it was a mere whisper compared to the noise in the room.

Hibari walked out the room before it got too rough.

"EVERY SINGLE ON OF YOU: _SHUT __THE __HELL __UP!__" _G roared and pulled the trigger. A hole appeared on the ceiling. Giotto's eyes rolled up to see a bit of plaster fall to the map. Then he looked at his right-hand man and sighed. At least the room was quiet again.

"Nufufu. Whoever gave you the right to order me around, G?" Daemon asked darkly. Giotto spoke quickly before all hell would break loose. Again.

"Daemon, you still haven't written a full report on what happened during your mission. I want it by this afternoon. I suggest you get to it."

"At least let me eat first," he grumbled before leaving for the kitchen.

"Daemon," Giotto said.

"I know, I know, you want us _all_ at the table. You and your cozy little family meals. Pah."

"Get Kyoya there as well," Giotto said. Daemon stopped, turned around and glared at Giotto before turning the corner.

"He'd rather you call him Hibari, kufufuf," Mukuro snickered.

"My apologies," Giotto said dryly, "I'm not used to calling people by their last names."

Someone knocked briskly on the door.

"Come in," Giotto called. A guard came in and saluted.

"Sir! A young man just left the Vongola Mansion and is headed for the harbour!" Giotto's eyes widened.

"How did he look like?"

"He had on a black coat and a yellow bird perched on his shoulder, sir!"

"That's Hibari-san," Tsuna gasped. "How did he get there so fast?" _He __must __have __also __skipped __breakfast__—__wait__…__does __he __even _eat? _Nah, __yeah __he __does__…__but__… _Tsuna cocked his head in confusion. _Won__'__t __he__…__oh, __never __mind! _He sighed. "I guess that's Hibari-san for you." Giotto watched with amusement as his descendant's facial features turned from shock and disbelief to worry, a snort, and resignation. He chuckled slightly. Then he, too, stood up from his seat.

"Well, I hope that Daemon didn't wake the cook. They are not awake at this hour. We'll cook our own food," he said cheerfully. Tsuna's jaw dropped as he heard this.

"A-Are you joking…? W-We…But…we…" he stuttered. _WE __CAN__'__T __COOK!_ He screamed in his head.

"Let's do this TO THE _EXTREME, _SAWADA!"

"Haha! This should be fun! Anyone want some sushi?"

"I haven't had sushi in quite a while. You know how to make it?" Asari asked Yamamoto.

"Yeah. My dad owns a restaurant, you see!"

"I hate sushi," G muttered. "I want something else for breakfast."

"Then make it yourself. I'm not going to do it for you," Gokudera muttered as he exited. They stopped and glared at each other.

_The __hell__…__never __in __my __life __have __I __met __someone __who __is __so __annoying, _G thought fiercely. _What __an __attitude._

_Man, __this __guy __really __pisses __me __off. __First __he __says __that __I__'__m __not __fit __to __be __Juudaime__'__s __right-hand __man __during __the __trails, __and __then __he __tries __to __get __me __to __quit. __Yeah, __right. __Like _that _will __ever __happen._

_Th-They__'__re__…__acting __the __same__…_ Giotto and Tsuna thought as they watched their friends and right-hand men barge out, both thinking, _I __can __cook __something __way __better __than __him __for __my __boss. __Hmph. __He __better __not __get __in __my __way!_

"G-Gokudera-kun! Wait up!" Tsuna ran after them. Yamamoto followed suit.

"LET'S GO!" Ryohei said. "I need to train as well!"

"G," Giotto sighed. It's been a while since he saw his friend so worked up. Usually he was calm and collected unlike his younger self back when the Vongola wasn't formed yet. "It appears that Decimo's friend has G all riled up all over again."

"It seems so. Come on, let's go! I know you've wanted to try more sushi ever since we visited Japan!" Asari walked out, humming. Giotto looked around and realised with slight embarrassment that they were the last ones in the room. He left quickly to catch up with the others.

When they arrived in the kitchen, they didn't know where to look first. In one area, G was taking out a pot and on the opposite side Gokudera was reading a recipe book. Between them stood Yamamoto, laughing at the two who were so serious about the entire thing. Chrome was making her way around the kitchen to gather the ingredients she needed to make a simple dish that Kyoko and Haru wrote down in her hand made recipe book. It was in her bag when she was transported through time. Mukuro was messing up G and Gokudera's work for fun. Tsuna stood aimlessly in the middle of all this, not sure what to do. Ryohei was trying to convince Gokudera to let him help but of course, Gokudera refused.

"Where's Daemon?" Giotto said. There was no sign of the man.

"He took my first serving of sashimi out to the table," Yamamoto said.

"Giotto, get out of here!" G shouted. _You__'__ll __make __a __mess __if __you __stay __a __moment __longer. _Giotto bit the inside of his lip. The last time he offered to help with something, it was disastrous. He quietly left the kitchen and sat on his chair in the dining room. He sighed and Daemon smirked.

"Got kicked out of your own kitchen again?" he said and popped another piece of Japanese cuisine into his mouth.

Giotto smiled. "Like you're any better—you don't know how to cook." Daemon stopped chewing and scowled. Then they heard the noise in the kitchen become crazier. Pots clanged and spoons flew. Glass chattered. Next came the raised voices. They turned to it to see Tsuna running out just before a volley of forks hit the opposite wall.

"HIIEEE!" He screamed.

"Dame-Tsuna, come back here!" Reborn said. Tsuna ran into the room with a fearful look on his face.

"SOMEONE _SAVE __ME!__" _Reborn stalked in slowly, knowing that his prey was cornered.

"You know that with them in the kitchen it will end horribly so why don't you just kick them out and cook us breakfast?"

"Hiiiee! I can't do that!"

"I'll shoot you if you don't do it willingly. You're even keeping Primo waiting for you." The teen snapped his head to Giotto and Daemon, who were both watching the scene with interest.

"B-But I can't cook!"

"Cook with your Dying Will, Tsuna!" Reborn lifted his gun.

BAM!

Tsuna jolted and fell to the ground but before he could even hit it, he was back on his feet with a slight difference that looked shocking for the two spectators although they suspected that it may happen: the brunet was stripped naked except for his cupcake pictured boxers. His eyes were fierce and filled with mad determination. They were orange and so was the flame on his forehead.

"RE…_BOORRRRNN! __ARRGG! _I WILL KICK THEM OUT AND COOK WITH MY DYING WILL! AARRRGG! EVERYONE GET OUUUTT!" He screamed and ran into the kitchen, tossing everyone out and putting himself in.

"You go, Juudaime!" Gokudera cheered with paper fans in his hands. Yamamoto sat on the ground with his sushi trays in both hands, a bewildered expression on his face. Then it turned to amusement.

"Hahahah! There goes Tsuna again!"

"_EXTREME!__" _Ryohei cheered. "Sawada, you should _extremely _join the boxing club!" The only reply was a roar as the pan caught on fire although Tsuna looked like he expected it to happen. He did some flips with whatever was in the pan and added more stuff to it.

"U-Uh…kid…are you sure you want to add that in?" G looked unconvinced.

"THIS IS THE ULTIMATE REBORN-BREAKFAST!" He replied.

"O…kay…" G said hesitantly as he walked away. He shook his head in amazement at Giotto. "What the hell? His tutor even has the Dying Will Bullets!" Giotto chuckled to himself.

"I guess we'll be having a fantastic breakfast then," he said.

G frowned with confusion. "Why?"

Giotto sighed and remembered that he only fired the bullet once and hadn't explained a lot of the details to them before. "Whoever is shot will do whatever it is they regretted not doing before they died. They will do it with their _Dying __Will, _as you know, and it will be done to the very best. It removes the external limiters, which means they aren't afraid or hesitant to do what they usually won't even think of doing, which means they can also learn new things," he explained. _Although the last part is just my theory..._

"Nufufufu. Why don't you use that mode, Giotto? You'll finish your paperwork much faster." Giotto had a horrified expression on his face.

"Y-You want to see me naked or something?" he cried out, which was really out of character for him.

Daemon glared at the comment. "No, I am _not __a __pervert, _you idiot of a boss!"

Giotto laughed. "I'm only joking. And to answer your question, no, I don't think I'd want to go into that mode while doing my paperwork or else I might end up tearing up the ones I disapprove, break the quill, pen, or table. Or all three of them. I don't want that happening."

"Kufufufu. Seems like I was not needed in the kitchen," Mukuro said as he slid into his seat and cast a feeble illusion at Daemon which was just as lazily countered.

"Be nice," Giotto said to Daemon in a stern teacher tone. Daemon smirked. Then Lampo came in.

"Daemon!"

"What?"

"Do you still remember our bet?" he asked. Knuckle sighed at them as he sat at his spot.

"Which one?"

"Daemon…" Knuckle said with his eyes narrowed. "No gambling is allowed at the dinner table."

"We aren't, we're just talking," Daemon retorted innocently. G let out a snort to show what he thought of it.

"You'll end up betting your lives away, at this rate."

"Shut up, Knuckle," Daemon and Lampo said.

"I'm talking about the one about Giotto," Lampo said, not even trying to hide it.

"What about me?" Giotto asked sharply.

"Oooohh, _that _one. Nufufufufu!"

"Well?" Giotto asked impatiently.

"Yeah, _that _one. So when are we doing it?"

"Doing _what?"_

"Nufufufufu. We can't just do it at any time. It needs to be perfect. You will owe us. I already have a place in mind."

"What?"

"As do I," Lampo retorted. "You willlose this one!"

"What are you discussing?"

"Nothing," the two stared at him with the blankest face ever.

"What are you talking about?" Yamamoto asked as he came in. "Here you go! Dig in!" He placed the two plates of sushi and other things which can be found in one such restaurant onto the table.

"Wow, that looks amazing," Giotto breathed out.

"Haha! Thanks! My pops taught me all I know about sushi!"

"Arrrgg! HERE COMES REBORN VERSION BREAKFAST!" Tsuna charged in. Giotto looked up in surprise. He glanced at his pocket watch and was even more surprised when he was right. It was past five minutes, going on to seven. Then Tsuna released his Dying Will Self, for his goal was completed.

"Haaah…that took a long time…" He collapsed into his seat.

"Tsuna, that smells delicious!" Yamamoto thumped Tsuna's back.

"Of course it smells wonderful! And don't pat Juudaime so hard when he's exhausted! He went over two minutes just to complete Reborn-san's wonderful recipe!"

"Calm down, Gokudera," Asari smiled gently.

"Has he ever gone past five minutes before today?" Giotto asked. He has never tried it on himself because he found it too embarrassing although his Hyper Intuition told him that it would help him.

"I don't know," Yamamoto scratched his head. "I think so. You'll have to ask the k—I m-mean, Reborn over there," Yamamoto tilted his head to Reborn who was testing the food. Apparently, the hitman didn't hear Yamamoto's almost fatal mistake. Sure, he'll let it off the hook if he still _looked _like a kid. It went with the disguise. But _now? _No.

"Hmm…it needs a bit more sauce," Reborn said and glared at Tsuna who squeaked. He turned to Primo. "Yes, I made him learn how to hold onto that mode for over five minutes although the last time I tested him, it was six minutes and a half. This time it was seven minutes." Giotto looked impressed. Then he remembered that Tsuna wasn't wearing any clothing and the cook might walk in because of all the noise.

He coughed to get his attention. "Um…Decimo, perhaps you should get dressed," he hinted.

Tsuna blinked and looked down. "Not again! Th-Thanks, Primo! I'll be right back!" He ran and tripped.

"Juudaime!"

"I'm fine! Go enjoy your breakfast! I'll be okay!" He ran out and they heard him trip up the stairs and all the way back to his room.

…_He__'__s__…__very __clumsy, _Giotto thought.

Soon, Tsuna was back with a short sleeved white shirt and black pants. His brown hair was messier than usual as he sat back down looking refreshed. He must have also taken a quick shower before coming back down.

They chatted (argued) happily (heatedly) as they ate. In fifteen minutes, everything edible on the plates were gone. Tsuna sighed and rubbed his bloated stomach.

"Dame-Tsuna, go pack for at least three days worth of clothing," Reborn ordered. Tsuna sighed and went to do as he was told.

* * *

><p>Another quick fifteen minutes passed and they were at the harbour, thanks to Reborn's special packing tactics: order his student to pack or else he'll be killed on the spot and tell him to head for the harbour. The rest of the Guardians will quickly follow him and run out as well. Reborn continued to fire shots at Tsuna's heels, which encouraged the student to run faster.<p>

He stared in wonder at the ship they were to board. It was large and magnificent. It was painted red and black and he could tell that it ran on a steam engine. The name was _Alognov. _Tsuna sweat-dropped. _The __Vongola __don__'__t __own __that __ship __my __foot! __Who __do __they __think __they__'__re __kidding?_

"Wait!" Tsuna cried to the men on the shore. The ship's crew was just about to embark. They paused and stared wide-eyed at the eight people rushing their way. They let out a small cry of alert and ran up the plank. They shouted something about some crazy people trying to board the ship.

"We need to get on that ship!" Gokudera shouted. By now they had reached the flagstones by the loading dock. A big bulky man stood in their way.

"Misters! You have to come earlier if you want to go on the ship!" he said disapprovingly, gazing at the teenagers.

"Sorry!" Tsuna said. "We were in a rush. We have our tickets with us. W-We can still go on, right?" he asked slowly, twisting his tongue to get the Japanese accent to disappear since Reborn was watching him. The man grunted and raised a hand to see the ticket. Tsuna obliged. Giotto bought them their tickets right after he knew where they were going. When the man glanced at the ticket and at the printed words which meant first class and confirmed that it was real, his attitude towards them changed.

"Right this way! Right this way! Watch your step as you go on. We'll take your bags for you!" Gokudera snickered at the man's reaction.

"E-Eh? T-That's alright, we'll keep them with us!" Tsuna said. After all, they were just light and small knapsacks.

"It's perfectly fine, sir! We'll keep it safe for you!"

"He said that he'll keep it with him so he'll keep it. Now hurry up before I bite you to death." The man gulped and turned around. He saw the boy who had arrived much earlier and had muscled his way onto the ship. The man quickly backed away and whistled that they were ready to leave although only half of the Vongola family was on board. A horn called and off they went.

"Gaa! Onii-san! Hurry up!" Ryohei was the last one on the plank. He jumped up and grinned. Then Mukuro and Chrome boarded. Mukuro was slightly unhappy because he had to be on the same ship as them, but was pleased that he had an opponent on board to lessen the boredom.

"Hiiiee! Reborn! Aren't you getting on?" Tsuna asked anxiously. His tutor was still on land, smirking at them.

"No. You're on your own this time, Dame-Tsuna. Here." He tossed something to Tsuna's face. It his him and he caught it before it could fall into the water.

"Keep it with you at all times. Hang it around your necklace." Although Tsuna now wore his Vongola Gear on his fingers, he still kept the chain necklace. He unlatched it and strung on the odd looking device and tucked it beneath his shirt.

"What is it?" He shouted as they moved away.

"Don't question your tutor," Reborn snapped. "Just leave it on at all times."

Tsuna gulped. "Hai…Bye, Reborn!" He shouted before Reborn became a tiny speck. He turned around and jumped out of his skin. He had forgotten that the prefect was on board.

"H-Hibari-san! Y-You're actually on this ship?" Tsuna exclaimed. Hibari glared and Tsuna stepped back. He swayed slightly as the ship moved.

"Hn. Hibird flew on this ship." Hibari said and climbed a set of stairs. Tsuna looked up and realised that he was going to the upper deck where they would be staying for the remainder of their time on board. Tsuna scanned the area and noticed a lot of other people on board, laughing and talking happily with whoever came with them. They also seemed to make friends easily because everyone was mingled all together.

As he walked up the magnificent steps, many people greeted him and welcomed him on board. A few smiled politely and went on their way, only to find themselves stopping and staring back at the group in shock or disbelief. Those were the ones who might have seen Vongola Primo and his Guardians before. A few errand boys and other staffs also recognised the first generation Guardians in their features but said nothing as to prevent an uproar.

"Right this way, sirs and miss," a bell boy said and guided them to their rooms. He looked at their tickets. "This way for you, mister," he said to Tsuna and stopped in front of a set of double doors. He opened it with a key and pushed the doors open. Tsuna looked surprised at the leisure sight that met him.

"Amazing!" He exclaimed. The bell boy looked at him weirdly but shrugged and gave Tsuna the key.

"Welcome aboard." He left them after Gokudera tossed him a coin, obviously over paying the boy.

"Juudaime! You get the biggest room!" Gokudera said in a victorious tone of voice.

"Kufufu. I need to rest." Mukuro disappeared. Chrome bowed.

"See you later, Boss…"

"O-Oh…yeah, okay, Chrome!" Tsuna smiled.

Yamamoto smiled and dropped himself on a plush couch. Tsuna looks out the window.

_So, __we__'__re __actually __in __the __past__…__and __we __have __to __find __ways __to __get __back __to __the __future. _He looked at the neat list Talbot had written down for him a bit before. He sighed and pocketed it again. They'll be going back to Vongola Mansion once they pick up the three things Talbot needed, then set off with other items to search for.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-15th**_


	6. Termini Imerese

**Chapter Six**

"Young Vongola!" Lambo cried and barged in.

"Hiiiee! Not another attack!" Tsuna cried out immediately and sat up, clutching his blankets. It was early in the morning and Tsuna had just collapsed on his bed six hours ago after trying to get his family to settle down for the night. Now, the sun was just peaking over the horizon. He squinted at Lambo's dishevelled figure and grunted before falling back to his pillow.

He sighed. "Lambo…what is it _this_ time?"

"Bakadera's chasing me!" He ran in and jumped on Tsuna's large bed.

"Aaahh! Get off my bed Lambo!" Tsuna fell off the right side and winced.

"Stupid cow! Why did you run in here? You'll be disturbing Juudaime's sleep!" Gokudera's silver hair was neat and tidy. He wore a simple shirt which was long enough to hide his belt. He also wore pants which Reborn _somehow_ found for them. His rings were all on his ringers and his emerald green eyes were as angry as the storm's.

"G-Gokudera-kun!"

Gokudera stopped his shouting and found Tsuna on the floor in his pyjamas.

"Juudaime…I'm really sorry that you were awakened by the stupid cow," he said calmly and approached Lambo. His head was tilted down which had his face shadowed. Tsuna and Lambo gulped. It wasn't exactly a good sign that Gokudera wasn't yelling. He held Lambo by the collar and subsequently dragged him unceremoniously out the door.

"Y-Young Vongola! Save me!" Lambo cried, fountains of tears running down his face and ruining the carpet. Resistance was futile. Gokudera shook Lambo like he would Uri and Lambo gave up. Gokudera paused, looked up, and _beamed._ "Good morning, Juudaime! I'll deal with this brat and then join you at breakfast! The captain says that we'll be reaching shore by late afternoon."

"G-Good morning…" Tsuna managed to say before the doors closed gently. Quietness surrounded his room again.

_What__ was __that?_ He thought slowly. Then his eyes lit with realisation.

"Lambo!" He pulled himself up clumsily and cursed his sleepy legs. He was too late. Whatever Gokudera planned for Lambo had already started. After a frightening minute, the beatings and explosions stopped. Tsuna gulped and got changed quickly. He put the X-Gloves in a pocket and ran out.

"Gao!" Natsu said.

"Hey, Natsu! Sorry, I can't let you out now," Tsuna said apologetically. "I have to find Lambo to see what's left of him!"

"Gao~!" Natsu said understandably. Tsuna stopped after a few steps to look around. The hall was dimly lit by lamps. The walls were covered with beautiful paintings and accessories. He inched away from them when he thought of how much he'll be paying if he accidentally ruined one of them.

He passed by his Guardians' rooms, which were still quiet. He knew that Ryohei was probably on one of his morning runs around the ship. He walked past another corridor, still looking for Lambo. He froze and retraced his steps. He looked into that corridor and saw Lambo on the ground.

"Lambo! Are you okay?" He ran to him and tripped on his feet.

"Ooof!"

"Young Vongola…" Lambo muttered in his sleep. Tsuna rubbed his aching head and looked skeptically at his Lightning Guardian. _He__'__s__…__asleep__… _Tsuna prodded gently for any damage but found none except for a few bruises. He let out a sigh.

_How he managed to avoid Gokudera-kun's dynamite I have no idea, but I'm glad he did._

"_EXTREME!__"_ Ryohei yelled at the top of his lungs. Tsuna raised his arm to stop the dust from blowing into his eyes as Ryohei ran by.

"_Cough!__ Cough!_ Onii-san!" He exclaimed and cleared his throat and blinked tears out his eyes. The screaming stops and Ryohei thunders back to him.

"Oh, Sawada! You're up pretty early!"

"Eh…yeah…"

"Hey, what's wrong with Lambo?"

"H-He got on the bad side of Gokudera-kun…again," Tsuna added.

"EXTREME!" Then Tsuna realised what time it was.

"O-Onii-san! You'll wake everyone up!" He said urgently and stood up. He looked left and right to make sure that no one was disturbed. He sighed.

"Oh! Sorry!" Ryohei said, just a bit quieter than before. Tsuna smiled.

"Do you think you can help me carry Lambo back to his room, Onii-san? I'm pretty weak and I can't do it myself."

"Sawada, you aren't weak," Ryohei frowned, losing his extremeness for the moment. Tsuna noticed that Ryohei had been doing that more recently, as if he finally took many things seriously.

"U-Uh, well…I can _fight_ in Hyper Mode, but now, I'm still Dame-Tsuna, and I don't have much muscle in my arms. See?" He sweat-dropped as he lifted his arm. His eyes were closed as he laughed. When he opened them again, Ryohei's eyes lit up.

"We'll just have to train you more then! But I don't understand how you can train with Master Pao Pao for three years and not get any muscles! You're not trying hard enough!" He picked up Lambo and slung him over his right arm like a sack of potatoes and took Tsuna's right arm in his left.

"HIIIEE!" Someone opened a door and threw something at him.

"_Shut__ up,__ you __imbeciles! __Some__ people __are __trying __to __sleep!__"_

"_S-Sorry!__"_ Tsuna squeaked.

The door slammed. Ryohei picked up the object. After examining it, he shrugged and tossed it over his shoulder. It hit Lambo and sank into his hair.

"Come on!" Ryohei totally ignored the comment their neighbour had just made and pulled Tsuna along. "After we put Lambo back in his room, we'll go for some light training! I would bring him along too, but it seems like he needs some _extreme_ rest!"

* * *

><p>After spending an immense amount of time with Ryohei, Tsuna's arms and legs felt like jelly. It was just like climbing Death Mountain all over again.<p>

"Onii-san…next time…don't…bring me with you," Tsuna groaned tiredly.

"What was wrong with it, Sawada?" Ryohei asked. His friend simply shook his head and sighed.

They went out to the deck for fresh air which Tsuna took in gratefully. A sailor passed and smiled at them. Children played with each other with whatever games they played back then, with the adults talking among themselves nearby. Some teenagers sat with bored expressions on benches. Tsuna and his Sun Guardian found an unoccupied spot and sat.

The water had a beautiful sea-green colour to it and the seagulls were crying out, enjoying the weather. He leaned on the railing and closed his eyes. His messy brown hair moved slightly with the breeze. Hs lips parted and he breathed in and out…

Then he heard counting. He opened his sleepy brown eyes slowly and blinked. He turned his head to the side and saw Ryohei doing sit-ups.

"Onii-san! Didn't you do enough sit-ups already?"

"Thirty…no, Sawada! Thirty one…there's no limit to how many sit-ups you can do to the _extreme!_ Thirty two!" He went down and up. Down and up. Tsuna sighed in exasperation.

"Juudaime! I've been looking for you! Are you alright?" Gokudera ran up to them with an anxious expression on his face.

"O-Oh, Gokudera-kun. Onii-san pulled me along for some training," he said with a huff. Gokudera glared at Ryohei.

"Oi, Lawn Head! You made Juudaime train with you since he woke up? That was six hours ago! I'll kill you for that! Juudaime didn't even have time to eat breakfast!" He pulled out his dynamite.

Yamamoto leaned out from the railing above and grinned.

"Hahahah! Look, it's Tsuna! Gokudera and senpai as well!" They all stopped to look up. Yamamoto and Lambo stared back at them, with Lambo looking beaten up.

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna sighed with absolute relief.

BOOM!

"AAAH!" Tsuna tumbled off the railing.

"Sawada!" Ryohei yelled. "You should at least tell me when you want to race me! I won't go easy on you!" He jumped across and dived in after Tsuna who just crashed into the water below.

"Juudaime!"

"Tsuna!"

"_EXTRME__ DIVING!__"_ Ryohei fell into the water with barely a splash. _Not._ Actually, what really happened was that he landed with a loud slap of a belly flop. Yamamoto carefully climbed over his railing and landed on the main deck. He chuckled.

"Senpai sure knows how to dive!" Gokudera rolled his eyes. He shook his head.

"He's useless! I need to save Juudaime!" He took off his sweater and shoes. "Baseball freak! Get towels! Juudaime's going to—OOII!" Gokudera leaned back on the railing just in time to see Yamamoto dive and disappear with barely a splash. Next to him on the floor were his shoes, shirt, and sword.

"G-Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna exclaimed. He was watching his friends one by one fall into the water for some unknown reason. He treaded water as he asked, "Why is everyone falling into the ocean?" Gokudera dived. Once he was beside a very confused swimming Tsuna, he said, "Who cares what they're doing, Juudaime. I came here to save you!"

Tsuna's mouth twitched. "Uh…how are we going to get back on board?" He asked.

Gokudera paused, but he had to continue moving his legs so that he won't drown. "Uh…"

Yamamoto and Ryohei popped out of the water. "Ahaha! That was refreshing!"

"YOSH! Let's race, Yamamoto!"

"You're on!"

"O-Oi, you idiots! We need to get back on board before the ship leaves us!"

"Oh, you're right…how are we going to get back on?" Yamamoto asked with a laugh. Gokudera felt like strangling the teen. Tsuna winced as his limps began to slow down.

"Heeeeeeey!" They turned to face the sky. On the ship holding a long coil of rope, was Lambo. Beside him was Mukuro and Chrome.

"Boss! Are you okay?"

"Chrome! And Mukuro! I'm so glad to see you guys!"

"Kufufuf. Maybe I should leave you there as entertainment…" Gokudera growled. Mukuro finished his sentence. "_But,_ we need to get you all back up here for lunch," he sighed. He took the rope from Lambo and dropped it into the water.

"Up you go, Decimo."

"Th-Thanks…Mukuro…" Tsuna said and reached for the rope. Gokudera beat him to it.

"Juudaime, we don't know if it's a trick or not! I'll go up first and then _I_ will be the one to pull you up!"

"Eh…I-I'm sure it's fine, Gokudera-kun!"

"I insist! It's also my apology for causing you to fall off the ship!" He began to climb. Tsuna's eye twitched. _I__'__m __pretty __sure __that __Mukuro __won__'__t __try __to __do__ anything__ to __me__… _He thought. Gokudera waved from the rail and grinned at his boss, saying he was ready to pull him up. It took him three tries before getting a good grip on the rope, and then another fifteen minutes to climb it. All the while, his family embarrassingly cheered him on. By now, two officers were lecturing Gokudera about being reckless, which caused Gokudera to argue with them. Tsuna pulled himself over and flopped onto the dry surface.

"_Shut__ up, __you __bastard!__"_ Gokudera held his fist up threateningly but the man wasn't intimidated at all.

"Shouldn't we help Onii-san and Yamamoto?"

"Che! I could care less about them! But if Juudaime insists…I guess I'll help them."

"Kufufuf. Tsunayoshi, now you owe me one," Mukuro chuckled. Tsuna paled and edged away from his Mist Guardian.

"Th-_That__'__s_ why you offered to save me?"

Mukuro smiled evilly. "Why, of course! Why else would I ever save anyone in the Vongola? Kufufu!"

Tsuna cringed.

"Grrr…you won't be getting anything from Juudaime!" Gokudera snapped and stood in front of Tsuna protectively.

"EEEEEP!" He screamed when he sees dynamite sticks and a cigarette. The officer winced at the high pitch voice.

"I'll bite you to death."

"_HIIIIEEEEE!__"_ Oh, how the officer wished he wasn't on the ship dealing with kids at the moment. He turned to scold the newcomer bringing weapons on board. He backed off when he was directed with a glare that could stop a wild lion in its tracks.

"Oya? The little skylark has finally come into the open." Mukuro's trident appeared. Chrome backed away quickly.

"Not now!" Tsuna wailed and pulled at his hair. They ignored him and the present officer who was trying to stand between them. Tsuna screamed and pulled him away a little too hard and they both ended up sprawled on the deck. That was better than being killed by those two. The kids who were playing just moments ago were nowhere to be seen; most likely back in their rooms, rushed away by their parents or guardians.

"Be quiet."

"Aaarrgg!" Tsuna groaned. 'What should I do? Reborn—!" He stopped when he remembered when Reborn wasn't around.

"AAAHH! REBORN, WHY AREN'T YOU HERE _NOW?__"_ He yelled at the sky frustratingly.

"B-Boss…" Tsuna stopped and looked at Chrome who stood beside him. Gokudera had gone to help Yamamoto and Ryohei, which was the only reason she wasn't shying away at the moment.

"What is it?" She pointed at the two most troublesome Guardians. Tsuna's eyes popped out of his head for the nth—he lost count—time since he arrived in the past.

"Mukuro! Hibari-san! Stooop!" He ran to them and ducked before his head could be hit by an imaginary pineapple. _Please, __let __me __live __through __this __voyage! __I __swear__ I __will ne__ver __complain __about__ Reborn __again!_ Then he heard a shrill of childish laughter.

"Look out!" Chrome screamed a warning to the little boy who was still in the open. He was chasing after a ball which rolled from his grasp and dangerously close to Mukuro and Hibari. Tsuna's eyes widened as he watched the boy, oblivious to the danger, pick up the ball. Mukuro and Hibari were so into their fight that they didn't notice the child.

* * *

><p>The boy forgot his ball beside the bench when his mother pulled him with her to go inside.<p>

"Hurry, Io, you won't want to be caught in a fight like that!"

"But they're just a little older than me! How much harm could they cause?" His mother sighed at the understatement of "a little older"

"They're at least ten years older than you!That's not called a little, Io! Anyways, they have weapons. I don't even know why the guards let them on board! Come now, we'd best get away!" After his mother released his arm, he looked around and noticed that his ball wasn't with him. When his mother wasn't looking, he snuck back up the stairs. He looked around and saw the two teens fighting with a trident and a pair of odd-looking shiny sticks. He forgot about those curious weapons when his red ball caught his eye. He whooped and laughed as he ran for it. He picked it up but a wave which hit the side of the ship unbalanced him, making him drop the ball in panic.

He ran after it. He laughed again when he crouched to pick it up. When he stood with it in his hands, he looked either way and saw the two rushing at each other. His mouth scrunched up in a shaky frown and his eyes began to water. For some reason, he felt scared. So scared that he couldn't move. The one with black hair said something to him in a mean tone but he couldn't understand it. Then the pineapple-hair styled laughed and spoke in that strange tongue as well. Neither stopped. Io also noticed that there was a large hedgehog following the black hair boy, its sharp spikes aimed for the pineapple-boy, while the blue haired one did something to his trident and made it look scarier.

He cried then and there and screamed. Suddenly, he was lifted into the air. His eyes were snapped shut. He felt himself being adjusted and his arm were pulled to wrap around someone's neck.

* * *

><p>"Get out of the way Herbivore, or I will bite you to death," Hibari told the boy with shocking blond hair.<p>

"Kufufu. He doesn't understand you."

"Damn! At this rate, he'll be caught by the explosion those two are going to cause. And I won't get there in time!" Gokudera turned to Tsuna. "Juudaime, what should—Juudaime?" Gokudera quickly turned back to the fight and saw Tsuna in Hyper Dying Will Mode, flying in to save the boy from the two. He hovered in the air while he quickly put the boy on his back so that his hands were free.

Tsuna said soothingly to the boy, "Everything's okay now. Just hold on tight." The boy opened his eyes and screamed when he found himself in the air.

"Hnn—you're choking me…"

"S-Sorry!"

Tsuna turned his head and gave the boy a kind smile. The boy stopped crying when he saw those comforting eyes. He loosened his death grip and looked around. Now that he was out of danger, he enjoyed the birds-eye view of the moving ship.

"Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome. I'll bring you back down now."

"How is it that you can fly?" He asked. "Can I fly, too?"

"Let's hope you don't."

"Huh?"

Tsuna stayed quiet. How was he supposed to explain that only the Mafia had the knowledge of how to fight with flames? He certainly didn't want this little boy to be involved with his world.

When they landed, the boy unlatched himself from Tsuna and ran to his mother who just opened the door to the stairs. She was in tears and smiled with relief when she saw her son safe and sound. He hugged her knees and she nodded her thanks to Tsuna, who smiled back. They went back down and Tsuna turned to face his troublesome Guardians.

"I can't believe it! You almost hurt that boy! Maybe even kill, Hibari-san! Mukuro!"

Hibari glared. Then he turned back to his fight with Mukuro.

"You should _extremely_ listen to Sawada!" Ryohei shouted. Tsuna shot Ryohei a grateful glance and took in a deep breath and calmed down.

"Mukuro, Hibari-san, now's not the time to be fighting. We need to get back to the future as soon as possible." They stopped their fight as their weapons clashed. They stayed like that as Mukuro answered him.

"I don't listen to you."

"Neither do I," Hibari hissed.

"You'll be able to see Namimori again," Tsuna negotiated calmly. Hibari stiffened at the mention of his hometown.

Mukuro scowled, knowing that Hibari was going to back down because of that. He and turned to Tsuna, who was just going back to his original form.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi…you took away my toy."

Tsuna sweated bullets.

"U-Uh…! Y-OH, LOOK! It's lunchtime! Gotta run! I'll catch you later, Mukuro! Bye!" Tsuna sped off with Gokudera right at his heels, complimenting on his nice save and smooth skills of convincing Hibari to back down. Tsuna draped a towel over his shoulders after drying most of the water off. Gokudera then began his hour long apology, which Tsuna hastened to make shorter.

"It's alright, Gokduera-kun," he said. "See? Not a single scratch." By now they were in the ship's restaurant. Someone in a uniform escorted them to a pair of double doors. Inside was a large, beautifully decorated room with a large table in the middle. A window provided them with a wide view of the sea.

"But Juudaime…"

"Maa, Gokudera!" Yamamoto sat across from them in their V.I.P room. "Just don't let it happen again, right?"

Tsuna nodded quickly.

"No one asked for your opinion!"

Yamamoto grinned and shrugged.

"Yare, yare, not this argument again." Lambo yawned. "Don't you get tired of it?" Ryohei began to get into an argument with Gokudera about who should sit where.

"You should sit next to the window, Octopus-Head!"

"Juudaime's not even sitting there! I only sit beside Juudaime!" Tsuna sweat-dropped. He was still standing, wondering where to sit.

"Where _is_ Sawada sitting?"

"Juudaime has to sit where he won't become an easy target!" Gokudera insisted.

"Where's that?" Yamamoto asked. Gokudera paused. _Juudaime__ can__'__t__ sit __next __to __the __window__ because __someone__ might __try __to __shoot __him __from__ there__… __he__ also __can__'__t __sit__ on__ the __far __side __because__ anyone __passing __by__ can__ easily __spill __something__ or __severely __injure__ him__…_

"Come on, Gokudera! We're in a _large_ room!" Yamamoto extended his arms to prove his point. "The large window's over there and the large door is over there! Tsuna can sit in between, if you're so worried!" He laughed.

"Che! Well I'm sitting next to Juudaime anyways!"

Tsuna slowly sat down. Once he did, a waiter came in to take their order. Tsuna ignored the man and looked around for Mukuro, Chrome, or Hibari. He sighed. He turned back to his present friends and saw that they were already ordering. He shrugged. It was fine by him…oh wait…he spoke too soon. Because the list went on and on and on.

"That's enough food. You can't eat it all," Gokudera said. Yamamoto, Lambo, and Ryohei looked at him.

"It's not _that_ much," they said. Gokudera gritted his teeth and took the menu from Yamamoto and the notepad from the waiter. His eyes scanned the page and his scowl deepened.

"Give me that!" He took the pencil from the man and scratched things out.

"Tch. Why the hell do you want _milk,_of all things? Geez! Reborn-san brought us to Italian restaurants before so you should know what you want to order! A sandwich? At least order things you won't usually order! Our ticket already paid for everything as well," he grumbled and then spoke in Italian, ordering all the gourmet meals he knew of. The waiter hurried to scribble everything down and then ran to get their orders quickly and away from the scary boy.

"G-Gokudera-kun, I think that you ordered uh…just as much as them…" Tsuna muttered. Gokudera smiles brightly.

"Don't worry, Juudaime! This meal will be so fantastic that you'll be asking for more!"

"R-Really?"

"Trust me on this!"

"Ne, Gokudera, am I still getting my milk?"

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

"I wonder how they're doing," Giotto said. He rubbed his head and ruffled his blond hair.

"They've only been gone for a day," G said as he bit into his lunch. "Stop being such a worry wart."

"…You're right."

"Where's Reborn?" Knuckle asked. "I haven't seen him ever since he came back."

Lampo yawned. "He said something about bugs." G kicked him from under the table. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Why would he be talking about _bugs?_ You must be imagining things or your Japanese is so rusty that you can't understand or form full sentences."

"What! If I can't, then how is it that I'm talking to you right now?"

"Even now you're talking half-half."

"Calm down, G. Lampo only began learning three years ago, and he didn't have anyone other than me to practice with, so we can't blame him that he's not as fluent as you," Asari said gently.

"Hah! There you have it..." Lampo yawned again. "Too much has happened lately…I haven't been getting enough rest. Don't wake me up until dinner."

"Lampo," Giotto called as Lampo exited the room. He leaned on the back of his chair to see Lampo properly. "You still need to give me your reports for the past few jobs you did." Lampo half growled and half sighed.

"_Fine._ I'll do that after my nap."

"Lampo."

"Okay, okay," he said and walked away, "I'll do it now…"

* * *

><p>"Talbot, who were the previous traders you traded with for your materials?" Reborn asked Talbot, who was fixing what he could before Tsuna returned with the important stuff.<p>

"Hm. I never asked for their names. That's how it works. They give me what I want and I give them what they want. No additional questions asked."

"Did you even see them?"

"Well, of course I did! It was before I was blinded. Besides, I wouldn't trust them otherwise. Hmph. You probably want to know exactly _who_ took over their roles, right? I'm not too sure about that. They are somehow related to the previous ones, with their own knowledge on science."

"Can you give me a face or a name?" Reborn asked impatiently. He tapped his shoes to the ground.

"Haha, funny you should ask, since I was already blind at the time. Anyways…it's somewhere on the shelf. I have drawings of them that a mysterious man gave me a few years back. It's the second one from the top to the left. It's rolled up and tied with a blue ribbon, I believe." Reborn turned and saw the paper he noticed the first time he walked into the lab. It was time to find out what was inside. He unrolled the paper and stared at the first drawing. A brow rose. Then he leafed through the rest and a smirk slowly formed on his face.

* * *

><p><strong>Termini Imerese Harbour <strong>

Tsuna stretched as he stood just a few metres away from the ship that was unloading the cargo. "Nnnnn! That was a delicious lunch!" He winced as he turned to look at the ship which would have to delay its departure due to its condition...with many thanks to Mukuro and Hibari. Apparently, while they were enjoying their meal, those two found each other and had another fight, this time in the boiler room. They were lucky that the ship was already pulling into the harbour at the time of the small explosion. The captain was shouting at them with a raised fist. Tsuna was pretty sure that he was saying something along the lines of, _"I don't want to ever see you again! You'll never be going back on this ship!"_ He sweatdropped and bowed to the captain crazily. Mukuro even had the nerve to put the damage on Daemon Spade's tab.

Lambo sighed at the noise. He shut one eye and looked around.

"Kufufu. This place is quiet. Too peaceful."

Hibari turned away from the group and began to walk in one direction.

"Hibari-san, where are you going?" Tsuna asked. Hibari didn't respond.

"Hey! Don't just ignore Juudaime when he asks you a question!" Gokudera growled.

"Doesn't your throat hurt from shouting so much?" Lambo asked as he unwrapped a piece of candy. He stuck the lollipop in and dug his hands into his pockets.

"Shut up!"

"Let's follow him!"

"Good call, Yamamoto! Let's go!" Yamamoto laughed and he followed Ryohei to where Hibari was headed.

"A-Ah! Wait up," Tsuna stammered. _Why__ are __they __following __Hibari-san __of __all __people!_

They followed Hibari up the harbour and stopped when he stopped. He turned right and continued walking.

"Where's that bastard going?" Gokudera asked. Hibari stopped again in front of a small store. He went in and the rest of them waited outside. They saw him glaring at the shop keeper and asking—more like _demand_ something from him. The man shuddered and quickly raised his hands and gestured them wildly, pointing here and there. When he was done, he shifted nervously behind his counter. Hibari turned around and stared at them. Tsuna eeped and stood aside as if they were still in school. Hibari walked out and down an empty street that was still packed just moments ago. Tsuna gulped and followed.

"Maybe he went to get directions," Yamamoto guessed.

"Kufufuf. There is no way he will help out the Vongola."

"Well, he _does_ want to go back to Namimori," Tsuna reasoned. "So…maybe he's doing it for his own sake."

"Juudaime is right, as always!" Gokudera cheered.

"T-That was nothing…" Tsuna said hesitantly. They passed brick buildings and wagons filled with all sorts of things as well as some stray animals here and there. Hibari's route took them to a bend. He stared at a shabby looking store with a wooden door and two windows on either side. The store itself was two stories high with a roof that looked like it couldn't keep water out. Tsuna stopped as something in him told him he won't like what he'll see.

"Juudaime, is something wrong?"

"Oh, uh…nothing, Gokudera-kun. Let's go." Yamamoto nodded and shrugged so that his pack was on his shoulder again. Hibari glared at the door. He turned his head to Tsuna and the rest of their group when they approached.

"I hate talking to herbivores." He leaned on the wall a few feet away and let the rest of them decide what to do. Tsuna gulped. He looks at Yamamoto and Gokudera, who gave him a confident nod. Tsuna rapped on the door loudly three times.

No one answered. He looked unsteadily around and knocked again.

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK—!_

"Alright, alright! I'm coming! Damn, can't anyone get any rest around here?" Someone from inside shouted angrily in a deep voice.

He stepped back from the door and tripped over his feet. His arms hit the rough pavement and supported him to keep him in a sitting position. Chrome took a step back so Tsua wouldn't collide into her. They waited a moment longer and the door was wrenched open. In the doorway stood a tall man, skinny, and wearing a white sleeveless shirt and brown pants. He sneered at them. He had black hair cropped short to the nape of his neck and strands framing his Italian features. He had a stubble on his chin which he scratched when he saw a brunet on the floor.

"What the hell are you doing there, idjit?"

Tsuna blinked at the man in surprise. Then…

"_HIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEE!__"_ Tsuna screamed at the top of his lungs and crawled away quickly all the while staring at the man they were looking for.

"Bastard!" Gokudera growled and produced his weapons. "I thought you died!" The man scowled and switched to the language he was pretty sure they were speaking in.

"If I were dead, I won't be here now, will I?" he snapped.

"Wh-Who are you?" Tsuna shrieked. _Oh,__ NO! __Please __don__'__t__ let__ it __be __him!__ Maybe __he__'__s __a __relative__ from__ the __past? _He thought quickly. _Please__ let __that __be__ the __case! __Eh__…_ he cocked his head and stared at him. _He__…__has __a __different__ aura __than__ Zakuro__…__nothing __like __that __man__ who__ burned __his __entire__ village.__This __man__ is __nice, __I__'__m__ pretty __sure__…_

"Why should I tell you, you idjit?" he demanded. Tsuna squeaked.

"Zakuro!" Yamamoto exclaimed. "Funny seeing you here!"

"_Hah?__"_ His voice went up a pitch. The man wrinkled nose and squinted at them. "I have no idea who you're talking about, brat!"

Gokudera snorted. "Whatever! Just give us the gold flelks!"

This got his attention. "Boy, do you know what you're saying?" He said seriously.

"Kufufu, give us the flelks or else we'll torture you instead."

The man backed away a step and frowned at them. "Why would a few idjits know about it?" He whispered to himself.

Ryohei, with his sharp hearing, heard this and grinned. "The inventor sent us here! He needs the stuff _extremely_ fast!"

"What inventor?" He didn't even seem fazed that he was heard speaking under his breath.

"Talbot," they said.

"Talbot," he repeated. He tilted his head to the side and rolled the name off his tongue a few times. "Nope. Never heard of him. Bye." He closed the door but Ryohei's foot was wedged in between. The man tried to kick it away or squish it but nothing worked

"Hnn!" He used his shoulder to apply more force to the door. "Get out!" He grunted. Ryohei just pushed it open.

"Aaaarrrrgggh!" The door slammed against the wall and the man let go.

"O-Onii-san…"

"You must know Talbot!" Lambo cried. "If you don't know him, how else are we going to get the gold flelks?"

"There are so many inventors I can't remember 'em! Besides, we don't give out names here!"

"Haha, Tsuna, can't we just get the flelks without relying on Talbot?" Yamamoto asked. "After all, he did say that all we have to do is complete some kind of request and we can get them!" The Zakuro-look-a-like stopped struggling against Ryohei, who had him in a head lock.

"_Now_ you're talking. At least you're not _all_ idjits!"

Yamamoto laughed and rubbed the back of his head embarrassingly while Gokudera glared at the baseball player.

"Well, now that you're finally going down to business, come in," he said gruffly and pinched Ryohei in such a way that he was forced to let go. Ryohei stood straight, opening and closing his fist.

"Extreme! How did you do that?"

He rolled his eyes. "Just go in there. I'll get you tea or whatever you want," he huffed and complained, "I can't believe an inventor trusts a couple of idjits with gold flelks. What has the world come to?"

Tsuna cautiously stood from the floor and walked in slowly. It looked normal enough, with a comfortable looking living room which had a well-used couch and a table. Two bookshelves were shoved to the side, filled with books and papers. Drawings of all sorts of things were plastered onto the plain, brown walls. The floorboards creaked when he stepped on them. He looked towards where he had last seen Ryohei and Lambo who were already in the room the man pointed them to. He turned around and saw Mukuro, Chrome, Gokudera and Yamamoto also looking around.

"Oi, are you coming in or not?" The man asked Hibari. Hibari glared and walked in.

"Don't crowd or I will bite you to death," Hibari threatened.

Tsuna gulped. "H-Hai, Hibari-san!" He bowed and quickly went to sit on the chair in the room. It was a small kitchen with a wooden counter and a stove. Yamamoto sat across from him and Gokudera sat to his right. To his left sat Lambo, and beside Yamamoto sat Ryohei, Chrome and Mukuro. Hibari leaned against the doorframe. Their host had his back to them as he poured them cups of tea from a kettle that was just beginning to boil before they arrived. He put them on a tray and set it in the middle of the table and sat down where he could see all of them.

"Now, time to make a deal. You want gold flelks and you know that you all need to do something for me before you get it." They nodded and tried their tea.

"This is amazing to the _extreme!__"_ Ryohei shouted. The man nodded.

"Yes, yes. It's the best around here."

"Get on with it!" Gokudera said. "What do we need to do?"

"Okay, then here's what you need to do." He paused dramatically. "Farm for them."

"What?" Yamamoto breathed out laughing when no one spoke. "That's all?"

"Your job is to dig out all the gold flelks there are in the field and have them stored properly. If they aren't all out of the ground by the end of the month, they'll be spoiled. Harvest all of them and you can take some back with you. Deal?"

They turned to Tsuna.

_It__ sounds__ too __simple__…__but__ we __still __need __to __get__ two __more __things__ before__ we__ can __go __back__ to __Vongola__ mansion._ His eyes filled with determination as he prepared himself for whatever the man would throw at them.

"Deal."

"Let's go then!" He suddenly stood up.

"G-Go? Go where?"

"My farm, of course! That's where I grow them!" He walked out. "We'll take the cart there! Hop on the back and the donkey will do the driving." The man leads their way to the back of his store where there were prepared jars of a variety of things that were used by scientists. They were brought back into the sunlight. He pointed to a wagon with four large wheels and a lot of hay inside. They clambered in, but Hibari stood firmly on the ground. He _hated_ crowding. It was against his moral code. Never will he find himself sitting in the same car—wagon/cart in this case, as a bunch of herbivores.

"Kufuf…what's the matter? Are you afraid of riding in the back?" Hibari glared at the speaker. Mukuro grinned back.

"I'll bite you to death." His two tonfa came out. Mukuro's trident appeared as well.

Tsuna hid his groan. "Not again!" Before he could do anything to stop them, Hibari was tossed into the spot next to him by the man. It was so unexpected that Hibari actually allowed himself to be _tossed_ in. He landed on his feet in a crouch and growled at the man who was now whistling innocently and patting the donkey to tell it to move. The group was unbalanced but slowly moved as one with the wagon so they won't fall into each other.

_I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death ___I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death __I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_ _I__'__ll__ bite__ them__ all __to __death_,_ Hibari chanted in his head as he tried to ignore the rest of them. Hibird landed on his propped up knee and he ran his finger down its back. Then he closed his eyes for a nap.

Gokudera was currently laughing silently and hysterically at what happened to Hibari. He pounded his fist against his thigh to muffle the noise. Every time he thought of it, he would start all over. Ryohei was less discreet and laughed loud enough to wake Hibari. The prefect gave Ryohei a few new bumps on his head and bit him to death for good measure. Yamamoto chuckled and commented on how easily angry Hibari could get.

"Let's see you being tossed around," Hibari growled at him. Yamamoto raised his eyebrows in surprise. He and Tsuna exchanged a look. Tsuna opened his mouth to speak but swallowed instead. He mouthed the words, 'H-Hibari-san…_spoke!_ T-To _us?_ I don't believe it!' Mukuro chuckled and Tsuna shivered.

"I'm sleepy," Lambo complained. He gathered handfuls of straw around him and made a make-shift pillow by tying it together with a longer piece of straw. Then he leaned back and began snoring. Gokudera kicked him and whispered, "Stop snoring! You're disturbing everyone else." Lambo scowled and turned to his side, away from him.

"Bakadera."

"What did you say?"

"Maa, maa, Gokudera," Yamamot put in softly and glanced at Hibari. Still asleep. Maybe.

"You should all rest. You'll need your energy," the man smirked.

"Uh..mister…" He scowled at Tsuna.

"That makes me sound old."

"Well…there's nothing else to call you…" Tsuna sweat-dropped.

Gokudera made a dismissive gesture. "Juudaime, there are plenty of names to call him," he said. "For example, there's idiot, old man—"

"Call me Rosso!"

"Okay…Rosso…" Tsuna doubt that that was his real name. "Where are we going, Rosso-san?"

"My farm."

"I thought that scientists have labs," Yamamoto said.

"I'm not a scientist! I gather their ingredients!" Rosso snapped. _Touchy__ subject,_ Tsuna thought. Rosso and Yamamoto got into an argument about the difference between handling scientific artifacts and being an actual scientist although Yamamoto did most of the questioning and Rosso the snapping. Chrome began to nod off and Ryohei began his Extreme Training, which was resting his cells in his body. Mukuro leaned back and closed his eyes.

The wind blew at Tsuna's hair and lulled him to sleep as well. The last thing he heard was Yamamoto's laughter and Rosso's sigh.

* * *

><p>"Hey, idjit, wake up," Rosso prodded Tsuna with the end of a shovel. He held his cigarette in his hand and sighed when he got no reaction from him. He tried waking up the rest of them and the only ones who seemed to be awake were Hibari and Mukuro. It was a wonder that they weren't fighting.<p>

"Wake them up," Rosso told Hibari annoyingly. "They're like the sleeping dead." Hibari smirked and held out his weapon. Rosso jumped out of the wagon and stretched. Behind him, he heard groans and shouts.

"Hn?" He walked back and looked in to see what the ruckus was about. He saw them all awake and shouting. In Lambo's case, crying. Mukuro and Chrome were the only ones who weren't holding their heads in agony. Rosso leaned his head back and took another look at them.

"What did you _do_ to them?"

"Wake the herbivores up," Hibari said and jumped out the wagon.

"O…kay," Rosso said and scratched his head. He shrugged and said, "I'll show you how to properly dig them up. If you ruin them, you'll be paying for them!" He warned.

"Ugh…Thanks for bringing us here, Rosso-san," Tsuna said. Rosso snorted.

"Don't thank me yet."

"Eh?"

"Thank me when you're done and on your way," he pointed a thumb to the field. Tsuna stood up clumsily and held onto the side of the wagon for support. He nearly fell over again when he saw the acres of land covered with golden coloured weeds as high as his ankles.

"W-We have to go through all _that?__!__"_ He screamed.

"Bastard! How are we supposed to finish this by the end of the week? We have to leave here in a few days!" Gokudera snatched Rosso's shirt front screamed in his face.

"Leggo o' me, idjit! It has to be grown in such massive quantities or else it won't work!" He growled and pulled away from the hot headed Storm Guardian. "If you want to finish by the end of the week, then you better get started! Don't forget that this was part of the deal!"

"What! You…you…!" Gokudera swore in all the languages he knew and Rosso's eyebrow twitched. He didn't know all those languages, but from the tone of his voice it was nothing good. He reverted back to Italian which was the language he knew better. Tsuna winced as he recognised some extreme swearing he recognised from Reborn. He sighed when the two of them bickered so quickly that he couldn't catch what they were saying.

"You lil' ungrateful brat! I'm being generous here ya know!"

"You old man! There's nothing generous about this!"

"Who the _hell_ are you calling an old man? You're the one with white hair!"

"IT'S SILVER!" Gokudera snapped. Ryohei roared.

"Extreme verbal fight! Go, OCTOPUS-HEAD! YOU CAN BEAT 'EM!"

"It looks white to me, _Octopus-Head!"_ Rosso grins as he uses Ryohei's nickname for Gokudera.

"Shut up! Don't call me Octopus-head, you Dinosaur-head!"

"WHAA! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING ME A DINOSAUR!"

"'Cause you smell like one!"

Hibari interrupted their argument.

"Herbivore, I'm not going to get my hands dirty for five pieces of herbivore food," Hibari said with his tonfa still at the ready. Gokudera was about to tell him that flelks weren't food when someone else spoke up.

"Kufufu. I won't let Nagi hang around pulling things out of the ground all day, and neither will I," Mukuro said darkly.

"Come on! This will be _extreme_ training!" Ryohei said and stood in front of the two unwilling Guardians.

"Onii-san, maybe this will be better," Tsuna said slowly. His eyebrows were knitted together and his mouth in a frown.

"Juudaime?"

"Tsuna, what are you thinking about?" Tsuna was actually trying to do some calculations in his head but he gave up straight away.

"Gokudera-kun, how long will it take for three of us to work on this?" Gokudera scanned the area and knelt. Then he grabbed the shovel and stuck it in the ground.

"O-Oi! Careful! You might ruin the gold flelks!" Rosso yelped. Gokudera scowled and tossed the shovel back.

"How deep are they?"

"Huh? They're about…a few feet deep."

Gokudera stared into empty space for a moment, his eyes calculative. "The soil isn't too hard. It's soft, so it won't take much effort to dig into it…with it being about two feet deep and then multiply that by…" he started to explain how he could use math to find out how long it could take for three of them with their strength can complete the job.

"A hundred and sixty-eight hours with no rest. That would be seven days in total, Juudaime," he concluded. Tsuna winced as he thought of that.

"Haah…that's a week…Gokudera-kun, what if we use our animals to help us?" He asked.

"Juudaime…that's brilliant! But it will depend on whose animals we use…Juudaime's lion and Baseball Freak's dogs can help dig…Hibari and Mukuro's animals won't be helpful at all…" he muttered and gave the two a sideways glance as if it were their fault that their box weapons didn't help with the job at hand. "And a bull…how can a bull help?" Tsuna smiled nervously at the glares his friend was receiving. "A kangaroo may be more helpful than them because of its legs…"

"I-I guess that settles it then; Yamamoto and Ryohei will stay behind with me," Tsuna said quickly. Immediately, complaints were up.

"But Juudaime! As your right hand man, I should be staying by your side!"

"Oya? You think that you can order me around?" Mukuro demanded and took a step towards Tsuna. Hibari simply gave him a look that said "you're dead," and walked away to a patch of grass to continue his nap.

"What do you mean by stay behind?" Lambo asked. "And I'm not going anywhere with those three! Chrome is fine, but I can't stay with those destructive freaks!"

"What?_ Who __are __you __calling __a __destructive __freak,__ stupid c__ow?__ You__'__re __the__ one__ to __talk!__"_

Tsuna slapped his face. _Now__ you__'__ve __done __it__, __Lambo._

Rosso watched them with a bored expression.

"Gokudera-kun, please?" Tsuna said with his hands clapped in front of him in a pleading gesture. "I really need you to go with them!"

"But Juudaime," Gokudera said in his own pleading voice. "As your right-hand man, I should stand beside you at all times!"

Tsuna sighed in exasperation as he thought of how he could get Gokudera to continue on his way with Lambo, Chrome, Mukuro, and Hibari. It's not like he didn't want Gokudera with him, he just had the feeling that he needed more of them to go ahead and get the other materials before they had to go back.

"But Gokudera-kun, you _have_ to go with them," Tsuna said, with a dreadful idea in his head that he didn't like. "I-I only trust you to look after them," he muttered so that only Gokudera could hear, which wasn't really a problem since everyone else was shouting their heads off or laughing, in Yamamoto's case. Gokudera stared at Tsuna wide-eyed and hanging jaw. He saluted Tsuna and his eyes shown with pride.

"Roger! As your right-hand man, I shall without fail, make sure that we gather the rest of the ingredients! Leave it to me, Juudaime!" Tsuna cringed at the formality of it. Gokudera had actually knelt down and swore that he'll do what he claimed and then stood back up with eyes filled with determination. _Maybe __I __said __too __much__…_

"Everyone other than Turf-Top and Yamamoto! We're going ahead to find other materials!" Gokudera yelled at them. All the arguing happening up to that point ceased.

"You're actually agreeing with the Young Vongola?" Lambo asked. Gokudera lifted his head proudly.

"Of course I'm agreeing with Juudaime! I'm his right-hand man! Juudaime has left me in charge of all of you so you have to follow my lead!"

"Herbivore, who do you think you are to put me under the command of another herbivore?"

"Hiiiee! S-Sorry, Hibari-san! It's just that it'll be faster if we work this way!" Tsuna had his legs and arms ready to run with a split second's notice. Hibari glared again. Tsuna gulped. Was it just him, or was the prefect doing that more often now? _I__ have __a __really __bad__ feeling __about__ this__…_

The want to go back to Namimori overcame his annoyance with them, but only slightly. Hibird calmed him down a bit by singing the school's anthem. He tightened his grip on his tonfa for a minute before releasing it.

"I'm not going to play in the dirt with you anyway, so we might as well move on," Mukuro chuckled and said abruptly, "Pass the map." He took it from Tsuna and looked at it.

"Oi! I'm supposed to be looking at that!" Mukuro ignored him and stared for a while longer. Then he turned it to its side.

"What are you doing?" Yamamoto asked.

Mukuro ignored him. "Kufuf. The closest one will take at least a day to get there. Hey, trader, where's the location of the trader in _Villafratis?__"_ He said the name of the place with no emotion.

"Where's that?" Tsuna wondered.

"In the middle of nowhere," Mukuro answered simply.

Rosso said, "We're called Gatherers! And I don't know where that one is."

"Of course you do," Mukuro replied in a heartbeat. "Kufufuf. All you weaklings have connections to each other. How else are you supposed to survive?"

"I honestly don't know," Rosso said blankly. "I haven't met the person there before."

"He's not lying," Tsuna piped in. Mukuro glowered. With Hyper Intuition, Tsuna could tell that the man wasn't lying, which ruined Mukuro's excuse to send him to visit hell.

"Young Vongola, I don't want to go with them," Lambo whined.

"Come with us and I'll give you all the candy you want when we go back," Gokudera barked and dragged him along. Mukuro and Hibari reluctantly followed. Chrome turned back to Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Ryohei. She bowed and said, "Boss, we'll be leaving now."

Tsuna took a step forward. "Wait, how are you going to find food along the way?" He asked.

"Juudaime, there is no need to worry about us! We'll find a way to get food!" Gokudera called and waved back at the stunned brunet.

_Y-You don't even know where this place is and what you'll see before you get there…how can you say that? You'll probably end up lost and hungry, Gokudera-kun!_

* * *

><p>Tsuna should <em>not<em> have said that. Because just a day later, they were lost and probably not even close to Villafratis.

"This is your fault, Bakadera!" Lambo pouted. Gokudera gritted his teeth.

"I'm not the one who tore up the map!"

"Kufufu, who are you blaming?" Mukuro asked, his red and blue eyes narrowing significantly. Gokudera stopped walking and crossed his arms.

"You and that skylark have been fighting with each other ever since we left!" Hibari glared but he was satisfied for the moment because he had a nice, long, uninterrupted fight.

"I'll bite you to death." _But,_ it didn't mean that he would stop biting whenever he felt like it.

"Che! I'd like to see you try!" Hibari's tonfa came out and so did Gokudera's dynamite. Mukuro being Mukuro, he didn't want to be left out of the fight. Lambo slapped his palm to his face and leaned against the tree with Chrome standing nervously beside him.

"U-Uh…Lambo, shouldn't we do something?" She asked softly. Lambo exhaled and closed his eyes.

"Nah, they'll stop fighting when they're all dead tired. Then we can drag them away." _But__ where __exactly __are __we __going,__ now__ that__ we__'__ve __lost __the __map?_

* * *

><p>Just a few minutes after they left, Tsuna and his friends were put to work. They started on one end of the field with the sun on their backs. Rosso had to teach them how to do it properly.<p>

"First you stick this shovel in...unless you want to use your hands?" No one interrupted. "Then you're going to slowly swipe off the top few layers of soil. Keep doing that until you feel the tip of your shovel hit something solid. And I repeat, _DON__'__T_ dig too deep and you _MUST_ pay full attention to what you're doing! The flelks are very delicate and can bend easily. I don't want a single one of them ruined."

"That's _extremely_ confusing! How are you supposed to be delicate but dig fast? We have to catch up with Octopus-Head as soon as possible!" Rosso stared at him coolly, his eyes growing scarier. Tsuna could imagine thunderstorms rolling in with lightning striking in the background.

"You will do this perfectly or you're never leaving," he said with a deeper voice.

"EEEP!"

"Hahha! Just kidding. I'm not going to kill you. Just finish all this and you can leave. Also, once you find them, put them in that." He pointed to a cart with four sturdy wheels and a separate large, tin box sitting on it, secured by straps.

"It needs to be filled a hand deep of this soil," he stomped his foot, "and you spread a layer of gold flelks on top. Then you do it again. Every time you return to dig, shut the lid. That is also very important—you mustn't forget!" They nodded. "Excellent. Shovels are beside the box." He walked to the small cabin built at the edge of the field.

"You're not helping us?" Yamamoto asked as they walked to the shoves. He picked up the longest one and tossed it from hand to hand.

"No," Rosso snorted. "You're the one who's doing it for your trade," he said and went inside. Tsuna picked one up and began to dig.

"This is EXTREMELY EASY!" Ryohei shouted after five minutes. Behind him was a pile of gold flelks. Tsuna yelped.

"Onii-san! You have to put it into the box!" He exclaimed. Ryohei looked confused for a second before understanding.

"Right!" He ran to the cart and pushed it forwards.

Rosso came back out with a glass of a cool drink. He sat at the porch, where he was shielded from the sun. He chuckled as he watched them work. Ryohei was working in the middle with Yamamoto on one side and Tsuna on the other. Ryohei began to shovel in soil and put the pieces in carefully. _I__'__m__ surprised __that __he__ can__ actually __do__ that!_ Tsuna thought. Then he helped put in another layer of soil before closing the lid.

Tsuna dropped his shovel and knelt to take out the piece of gold flelk for the twentieth time. He held it in his hands and examined it. It looked like aluminum foil, but gold and less malleable. The surface was rough and dull but he could tell that it was soft. He stored it and continued. At first the job seemed easy, but the shovel began to get heavy. With the sun beating at their backs, they began to sweat and their muscles grew tried.

"This is _extremely_ exercising!" Ryohei said.

"This is fun!"

Tsuna groaned.

"Come on, come on! You have a few hours until sundown, so you better hurry up! At least finish the first row," Rosso called to them. He had gone to get another drink and was back to boss them around. Tsuna could tell that he was having fun because of the spark in his eyes. It wasn't fair.

Yamamoto decided that Kojiro and Jiro should help out.

"Hey, it's been a long time!" Yamamoto laughed as they greeted their master, one of them jumping excitedly and the other swooping down. They set off to use their super senses to locate pieces of flelk. Ryohei did the same with Garyuu, his kangaroo. They bear hugged each other before Ryohei asked Garyuu to push the cart forward when they needed to. Tsuna sat down and looked at his rings.

"Natsu, I need your help now. Would you come out?" The ring shown and out Natsu came.

_"Gao!"_

"Hey Natsu! Listen, do you think you can help me find these gold flelks in the ground in any way without destroying them?" He showed Natsu a piece he found just moments ago. Natsu prodded it with his muzzle and gao'd.

"That's great!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-15th**_


	7. Let's play tag in Villafrati!

**Chapter Seven**

"Juudaime, there is no need to worry about us! We'll find a way to get food!" Gokudera called and waved back at the stunned brunet. He and the others set off down a path which led out of town, south wise. Gokudera continued to wave until he couldn't see Tsuna anymore and then he faced the front of the group.

"Right. Give me the map," Gokudera demanded. He snatched it from Mukuro's hands, who glared daggers at him. "You can't read it properly," Gokudera said before Mukuro could complain. Mukuro shut up. Lambo decides that it wouldn't be a good time to snort. Ahh, the things he learns from hanging out with Mukuro for over ten years…

Hibari had no problem making a fool out of Mukuro, so he snorted. Mukuro shoots Hibari a glare and does nothing else. Lambo raises his eyebrows. "You're not going to fight him?"

"Kufufu. Only little children will fight over every little thing," Mukuro replied.

Gokudera rolled his eyes and unrolled the map. He scowled. "It will take us at least _two_ days to get there."

"I'll just take my leave," Mukuro said and began to fade. Chrome panicked at the sight.

"The herbivore can't deal with walking for two days," Hibari mused. Mukuro came back instantly.

"I can so," he snapped. Hibari turned away.

"Yare, yare, that's a long time. Are we walking all the way there?" Lambo groaned.

"I hope not," Gokudera growled. "We should be able to find a ride somewhere though."

"How are you going to do that? We're walking in a forest," Mukuro muttered.

"We'll be out of the forest in a few hours! We're going to hit a path where we can get someone to drive us to this place!"

"But look at all that bumpy stuff on the map! Aren't those hills?" Lambo asked and pointed at the paper. "How are we going to go through _that?__"_ Gokudera used the said map to hit Lambo's head.

"There will be roads! God! Don't any of you have skills in geography or cartography?" They shook their heads. Gokudera looked at them with dismay. "Tch! Whatever. Follow me if you want to get out of here."

He began to stomp forwards with the rest following. Beside him was Lambo, who wanted to be nowhere near Hibari. Then there was Mukuro, Chrome and lastly, Hibari brought up the rear. Hibird flew ahead as a scout he decided on his own. Hibari let him go. They stayed like this for less than fifteen minutes before Mukuro decided that Hibird was annoying him too much with his chirping. He tried to stab it unsuccessfully.

"Kufufu. To think that such a pipsqueak used to belong to Birds," he said. "All it's good for is chirping."

"Herbivore…"

Hibird had to seek refuge in Hibari's black hair to avoid getting hit by Mukuro, who tried to stab Hibari's head anyways. Of course, Hibari dodged. "What did you just say?" Chrome had moved away with a worried face.

"Mukuro-sama…"

"Hey! I said no fighting!" Gokudera yelled.

"Silence, herbivore," Hibari said. "I have to teach this herbivore a lesson." Hibari was _boiling_ with rage. This was the _last __straw._ Gone was the little patience he ever owned and gone were his limits. There was _no__ way__ in__ hell_ he wasn't going to bite this herbivore to death. _No. __Way._

"Oya? Well I have to teach this little duck a lesson."

"Duck?" Lambo asked in a confused tone. Gokudera heaved out a heavy sigh. Then he screamed.

"WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON AND THAT'S FINAL!"

Lambo, who was standing right beside him, vibrated from the volume of the command. Mukuro and Hibari gritted their teeth and then turned to glare _hard_ at the right-hand man.

"I'll bite you to death," Hibari said to Mukuro. "After I bite this herbivore to death."

"Kufufufuf. What makes you think that you're going to be the one to do that? There's a line."

Gokudera and Lambo sweat-dropped. Chrome swiped her head between the three of them quickly, wondering what to do. Surely they will never arrive at their destination if they broke out fighting.

"Ne…Chrome…aren't you going to stop them?" Lambo asked. Chrome's eye shows surprise as she looks at the Lightning Guardian whom she was most familiar with as a baby.

"Huh?"

"You can stop them." Lambo backed away from them and hid behind a tree. "They'll kill me before I can even get close. You on the other hand, they'll definitely stop fighting if you go stop them," he said.

Chrome shook her head. "How are you so sure?" she asked in her soft voice.

Lambo shrugged. "You've done it before…so it _should_ work."

"Huh?"

Lambo shook his head furiously and banged it against the tree trunk. "Never mind!"

She heard a clang and turned around. Hibari was hitting his left tonfa towards Mukuro's face but it was blocked by the trident. Mukuro's red eye turned into the kanji character for four—combat: Path of Asura. He swiped his weapon into Hibari's legs follow through by an upwards cut. Hibari evaded all of this and attacked. Gokudera tossed a small dynamite stick at their heads when their weapons clashed. The two split just seconds before the explosion.

Mukuro chuckled. "Don't be so hasty, Gokudera Hayato. Your turn will come soon. Let me finish this weakling first."

"Are you talking about yourself?" Hibari asked. He whipped the end of his tonfa at his opponent.

Mukuro's trident got tangled with the chain sprouting from the end of the right tonfa. Gokudera punched the two of them and the map slipped out from his shirt pocket.

He swore. Mukuro glared and flung his trident at him. Hibari swung his tonfa. The blows glanced off him but tore through the paper. With their distraction gone, they continued to fight against each other. Gokudera stared at the remains of the map in utter shock. He didn't get a chance to memorize it and they _ripped__ it __apart!_ _Now_ how were they supposed to proceed!

Hibari attacked viciously, his eyes filled with hate and blood lust. There was no stopping him.

In just five minutes, the area they were walking through was in ruins. The trees had fallen, the earth torn out from the ground; there was a clearing of at least ten metres wide in all directions with nothing to salvage. The map that Gokudera planned on picking up was _gone._

They continued to fight for another half hour, with Gokudera sulking to the side, and Lambo trying to annoy him into stopping their fight. He soon gave up when it turned out to be a useless attempt. Gokudera decided that he was going to let them fight each other. That way, he can do the honour of tying them up and dragging them to their destination. He was finally going to get the chance to do it. So he waited.

* * *

><p>And their fight was over—after sunset.<p>

"The two of you are finished your fight, I suppose?" Gokudera stood over them angrily. His fists were clenched at his sides, shaking. He really ought to knock some sense into them, but then again, it didn't seem worth it. At least he should do it when Mukuro's not lying on his back, out of breath and tired; or when Hibari isn't looking the same with his eyes closed and breathing a little faster than usual with Hibird chirping on his knee which was propped up by his other knee. Chrome went to kneel beside Mukuro.

"Mukuro-sama, are you alright?"

"Kufufuf. I'm fine, Nagi. We just need to stop for the day. Don't you see? It's night."

They walked until they were back in the undisturbed part of the forest and rested beneath a tree. Hibari also got up and jumped onto another tree far away from the two illusionists. Lambo yawned and took off his pack and used it as a pillow. There were still a few pieces of hay left from the ride and he flicked those aside. He huddled into a ball and snored. Gokudera stood in the middle of the clearing. He tilted his head up to look up at the starry sky. He stared at the ground.

"_WE__ DIDN__'__T __EVEN__ GO __PAST __THE __FIVE __HUNDRED __METRES __MARK!__"_ He screamed in frustration.

* * *

><p><strong>The next day...<strong>

Gokudera winced as the first rays of the sun hit his face. He shielded it with an arm and squinted. The air was still cool and the grass was filled with dew. He sat up and shook the sweater he laid on the ground until it was pretty dry. Then he nudged Lambo with a foot so he'd wake up.

"Oi, wake up." Gokudera yawned as he did this. As Lambo stayed as still as stone, Gokudera looked around for his other companions. He found them where they slept last night. They were already stirring. Gokudera tsked. _At__ this __rate, __we __won__'__t __reach __Villafrati__ until__ tomorrow __or __the __day __after. __Damn! __If __only __there __were __cars __around!_

"I'm hungry," Lambo murmured as he rubbed sleep from his eyes.

"Then look for food."

Lambo scowled. "Why do _I_ have to look for food?"

"Because you're the one who's hungry… Or you can prepare the campfire. Either one works for me," Gokudera said.

"How am I going to get fire?"

Gokudera tossed him his lighter. "Use that. And you better not lose it!" Hibari jumped off his tree and headed in another direction.

"Where are you going?" Gokudera called. He couldn't risk anyone running off now.

Hibari paused. "I'm not going to eat any herbivore food," he said.

Gokudera snorted. He's probably going hunting. Mukuro also decided to get food, but by other means other than hunting; he lured the prey into camp with illusions. Then he would kill it.

Chrome went to help Lambo with the fire. Gokudera knelt to the soft dirt beneath his feet and tried to recreate the map as he remembered. But with Lambo whining nonstop and Mukuro's evil laugh as he gutted the animal, not to mention that he didn't remember much in the first place, the idea totally failed. He tsked again and tossed the branch he was using as a writing utensil into the slowly burning fireplace Lambo was building. _At__ least __he __learned _something, Gokudera thought.

"Ne, ne, Gokudera, why isn't the fire getting bigger?" Lambo asked.

..._Never mind._

"You're not feeding it enough oxygen!"

"Oxygen?"

"Blow it!"

"What?"

Gokudera motioned for Lambo to get up, since he was too tired to kick him. Lambo obeyed and they watched as Gokudera knelt beside the twigs they gathered. "Get more dry wood." He blew into the flames for a long second as Lambo and Chrome gathered twigs. The embers began to glow and he used a stick to shift the dead ones away. He blew again and _whump!_ Quickly, they began to pile it with dry tinder. A few minutes later they had a warm fire going. Chrome turned to Mukuro.

"Mukuro-sama, the fire is ready."

"Kufufu. Good job, Nagi. I have enough food for the two of us."

"But what about us?" Lambo whined.

"You can find your own food," Mukuro said. Lambo whined again.

"You can easily get enough food for all of us!" Gokudera argued. Mukuro's smile faltered although no one but Chrome noticed.

_Mukuro__…__sama?_ She tilted her head.

"Kufufu, as if I'll help the likes of you get food."

"Why you…!" Gokudera growled and took out dynamite sticks to bomb the illusionist. What stopped him were footsteps coming their way. Hibari came out of the shadows and sat beneath a tree.

"Did you find anything?" Lambo asked excitedly, temporarily forgetting his fear of the prefect.

"…Hn."

"W-What does that mean?" Lambo asked. He hasn't exactly mastered Hibari's language yet…_yet._

"He hasn't found anything, of course," Mukuro laughed. Hibari glared. Mukuro already had his meal on a stick and was roasting it above the fire.

"You're not going to have time to finish that all by yourself," Lambo said hurriedly. He was beginning to get very hungry. And it didn't help that he just finished his stash of candy. "So why don't you share it with the rest of us? That way, we can move on quicker." Mukuro's brows knit together at the sense the Lightning boy was making.

"Nagi, do you want to share? After all, if you do, they will make our portions smaller."

"I'd rather we share the food," she answered.

"Very well. We will share," Mukuro announced to them and took it off the spit. He cleanly sliced it up and tossed them to everyone else. How nice of him. Except that he didn't tell them, so Lambo's piece landed on his face, greasing it up. Gokudera and Hibari almost missed theirs, but they managed to catch it because of their quick reflexes. Mukuro gave Chrome hers when she was ready to take it.

"It's good," she murmured. Gokudera bitterly agreed. Lambo didn't care as long as it was food and he could eat it. Hibari, on the other hand, was more skeptical. He sniffed it and stared at it for a full minute. Mukuro looked offended.

"Do you really think that I'd stoop so low as to poison the unaware?" Hibari bit into it for the sake of proving that he wasn't afraid of a mere herbivore's cooking. To his surprise, although he didn't show it, the meat wasn't as bad as he thought it would be considering there wasn't any additional flavouring to it.

* * *

><p>"It's your fault we're lost, Bakadera! There's also no food around!"<p>

Gokudera gritted his teeth. "I'm not the one who tore up the map!"

"Kufufu, who are you blaming?" Mukuro asked, his red and blue eyes narrowing significantly.

Gokudera stopped walking and crossed his arms. "You and that prefect have been fighting with each other ever since we left!"

Hibari glared but he was satisfied for the moment because he had a nice, long, uninterrupted fight. "I'll bite you to death."

"Che! I'd like to see you try!"

Hibari's tonfa came out and so did Gokudera's dynamite. Mukuro being Mukuro, didn't want to be left out of the fight. Lambo slapped his palm to his face and leaned against the tree with Chrome standing nervously beside him.

"Lambo, shouldn't we do something?" She asked softly. Lambo exhaled and closed his eyes.

"Nah, they'll stop fighting when they're all dead tired. Then we can drag them away," he said without realising that those were Gokudera's thoughts just the day before. _But__ where __exactly __are __we __going,__ now__ that __we__'__ve __lost__ the __map?_

"Okay, stop the fight!" Gokudera shouted and unleashed a quarter of the bombs he had on his person—which was quite a lot.

_**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**_

Lambo stood up and gasped at the scene. All three of them were separate from each other and all sported burns and scratches. Thar was...quick...a little...too quick...

"You…" Hibari muttered and looked at Gokudera.

"Juudaime told me to look after all of you," he said calmly. "And I will fulfill his request no matter what! The only way we can succeed is if we work together," _although__ I__ hate __to __admit __it,_ "and kill each other later."

Although none of them would admit it, they were currently exhausted from fighting one another. Gokudera took advantage of their situation and got up to start walking. He swayed and grabbed Lambo roughly for support.

"Whaa!" Lambo's arm snaked around a thin tree trunk to support both of them. He was physically a year older than them he had no trouble with helping Gokudera walk.

"Man, I can't believe you did that. Baka." Lambo sighed. He put Gokudera's right arm over his shoulders and held it there with his right so that they wouldn't fall. "I should just dump you on the ground right here for your idiocy." Gokudera put Lambo's head into a headlock.

"Say that again?"

"I-I didn't say anything!"

"Tch." Behind them, Mukuro and Hibari muttered to each other. If one were to listen closely, they could hear that they were clearly arguing with each other and calling the other names.

_Boys__ will __always __be __boys__…_ Chrome thought.

"We still have an hour before reaching a village or something," Gokudera called over his shoulder.

"A village?" Lambo said. "What for?"

"To buy horses or a wagon which we can sit in while a horse pulls it along!" Gokudera growled.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

The tip of the pen which was used to write on a piece of paper snapped. The pen rolled away from the slackened grip, ink spilling out slowly. G caught it before it dropped to the floor and ruined another carpet.

"What?" he asked Giotto who was working across from him. They were currently in Giotto's office where they were finishing their work.

"Oh my God…" Giotto murmured. His orange eyes were unfocused. G narrowed his own eyes at his boss.

"Giotto?"

Giotto rubbed his temples and sighed…or groaned? "I totally forgot…"

"Forgot _what?__"_

"Oh no…oh no…oh no…" Giotto fretted and ran his fingers through his hair. "It's a disaster!"

"Damn it, Giotto, spit it out!"

Instead, Giotto began to spin his head around the room with a frantic look in his eyes. "This year is our famiglia's turn to host the ball! The other families are expecting the invitations in a few days and they should have been mailed out _today!_ Holy _cow_ how did I forget! I'm dead!"

The ball he was referring to was the one that every famiglia that was part of Vongola Alliance attended annually. Each year it was hosted by a different family.

G blinked. How did he forget about it? Usually, he'd already have them prepared and written, stacked on Primo's desk waiting for him to sign it! What the hell happened to him—oh…right. The tenth generation popped by. That's what happened. His eyelids fluttered as he tried to hold in his anger.

Meanwhile, Giotto was wondering about _how _they were going to have them ready by the end of the day so that they will be received by the other famiglia's boss on the correct date? And…that man was going to be there as well…

_Oh__…__shoot.__ I __forgot __about__ that! __He's going to kill me__!_ He was so deep in thought, that it wasn't a surprise when he nearly fell off his chair when G slammed both his hands on the desk, which was made to withstand such gestures. Giotto spared a thought on thanking the store owner of being right that this desk can go through a tornado without a scratch, before looking up at G.

"G?"

"Primo…it's still early…Every person is going to be writing invitations," he said through gritted teeth. "Starting this instant." He walked to the door and pulled it open. He turned his head to the right and saw Margaret.

"Margaret!"

"Master G?"

"Get every single Guardian into Primo's office now!" She scurried away to do as she was told.

Moments later, all the Guardians except for Alaude were present.

"What?" Lampo asked tiredly. "We didn't even have breakfast yet and you made us come all the way here?"

Giotto smiled weakly as he paced around the room.

"It couldn't be helped, Lampo. I'm sorry. It was my fault. I should have remembered. But now I'm probably just as good as dead…maybe I can set it to a later date? Perhaps I can just say that I was feeling ill and wouldn't have been a proper host! And maybe…oh god, I'm running out of ideas! Do you think we can even prepare with with the little time we have? I'll probably have to go and look at the wine we'll be using! And then check on the security and lodgings because it's going to last a few days! The maids have to do a look over of all the guest rooms we have! And then I have to practice for what I'm going to say at the podium and they're going to expect all of the Guardians to also stand with me there. Do you all know where you have to stand? And damn! Alaude's going to miss it! I totally forgot about the ball so I sent him on a mission…oh I really hope he's going to come back soon…it's in less than a week!"

"Giotto, stop using God's name in vain," Knuckle frowned.

"What the _heck_ are you talking about?" Lampo asked.

"Nufufufu, if I was summoned here to listen to Primo talk to himself, I'm leaving."

G shot him a glare. "It doesn't matter whose fault it is, we just need you all to write invitations!" G said.

Daemon scowled. "Why can't you get someone else to write them? We don't have that much spare time."

"Invitations? You mean that ball?" Lampo asked with a horrified expression. They ignored him.

"We were always the ones who write the invitations," Giotto said, coming out of his rambling. "Ever since we've started the alliance, we wrote our own invitations."

"I know," Daemon said and loosened his collar and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. "I'm just complaining for the sake of complaining."

Giotto gave Daemon a sad smile and felt a pang in his heart.

"Let's just start!"

* * *

><p>Gokudera, Lambo, Chrome, Mukuro, and Hibari reached a small village just a few hours before lunch even though Gokudera said they will get there in just an hour. They immediately went to the stables to see what they could buy with the money given to them by Giotto.<p>

"Hey, can't I go?"

"Okay whatever! Just go! Make sure you bring back food for the rest of us to last a few days while you're at it!" Gokudera snarled at Lambo and tossed him a small bag of coins. Lambo cried and jumped in joy, then ran off somewhere.

"Gosh," Gokudera muttered. He turned to the stables and looked at his two companions who were unusually quiet. _Whatever._

The stable was a simple barn with horses at the back and a small office-looking place at the front. Gokudera thought that it might be for handling the documents going in and out on a daily basis. They stepped into the quiet room.

"Excuse me! Is anyone here?" He shouted when no one came to greet them. They heard a clatter of a chair being pushed back and footsteps coming their way.

"Well, well, well. Who have we here?" The woman grimaced when she saw them. "More trouble makers?" She had long brown hair with blue eyes. She was of average height with a slim build. She wore riding gear.

"We're here to buy two horses," Gokudera said seriously.

The woman scoffed. "Like you kids have the money to buy even a horseshoe."

"Hey, I'm serious!" Gokudera growled. He dropped the bag of coins on the desk in front of them and the woman stared at it. Through the small opening of the draw string she could see sparkles.

"Stole 'em, did'ya?"

" 'd better watch your mouth, woman. Don't lump me or accuse me for stealing petty things like money." She glanced at Mukuro and quickly regretted it. Those eyes will haunt her for life. She shivered at the sight of the different coloured eyes and looked at the girl with an eye patch. She looked like the older boy's younger sister, the way her hair was styled and the way how she stood by him.

Then she looked at the other boy she spoke with, who had silver hair which reached his jaw. His startling emerald eyes bore into her blue ones and she immediately marked him as a troublemaker.

Further back, standing away from the group but still close enough to be considered part of it, was another boy who looked to be the same ago as the one who scared her. This one was no better. He wore black pants and a white dress shirt. On his shoulders was a black jacket with an arm band. Embroidered onto it were two characters of an Asian language she was not familiar with. His grey eyes glared into hers and she gulped.

"Are you going to sell us horses or not?" Gokudera demanded and took the pouch back when the woman tried to take it. She nodded slowly.

"Follow me." She walked through the door she came through and they followed. Hibari also went since he was curious about the horses.

At the back they were greeted by ten of them. All were healthy and strong, bred for the road.

The Guardians wondered around to admire them. Hibari glared at one, which stared back defiantly. He instantly liked that jet black mare although he thought that it needed a little bit of discipline for looking at him like that. Then the horse suddenly snorted and nuzzled Hibari as if the human passed the test. Hibari raised a brow then he turned to the herbivore who was supposed to be buying the horses.

"Herbivore," he said. Gokudera turned from the one he was looking at.

"What?" Hibari said nothing, but stood beside the stall. The horse's head stuck out and stared at Gokudera. He walked towards them and looked at the horse.

"This one?"

"Hn." Gokudera knelt and lifted a hoof. Then he went into the stall with the permission of the woman. The horse almost bit him but he held it back. Hibari smirked. Gokudera continued his examination and stayed away from her back hooves. He opened her mouth with some difficulty of the horse giving him attitude but he had to admit that it was the finest mare he could probably ever find. Another horse had also caught his eye, another mare. It was a brown one with white spots on its nose and one surrounding its eye. Both were good.

"How much for the two of them?" Gokudera thrust his thumb in the direction of the two horses.

"You can't buy the black one," she said. "She—two gold coins." Hibari helped change her mind with a glare and the visibility of a tonfa. "Including the other one, four gold coins."

"That's a rip off!" Gokudera exclaimed. He didn't know anything about the currency of this era, let alone the cost of horses. "The black one's only a gold and two silvers! The same goes for the other one! Including tack and two saddles, three gold coins and a silver. I'll even give you three silvers for a sturdy carriage if you have one."

Mukuro whistled.

"You drive a hard bargain, young man! There is no way I'm selling a carriage for three silver coins! Not even the shabbiest! And the horses cost much more than the price I gave you!"

She and Gokudera's voices rose as they bargained on a price, while Mukuro and Chrome stayed for the entertainment. Hibari watched as Hibird and the horse got acquainted. She didn't seem to mind the little fluff ball at all.

They finally settled on a price and she kicked them out right after the coins switched hands.

Gokudera shouted in triumph and stared at the carriage they bought. It was like any other one. It could hold up to six people. It was indeed nice and sturdy; all the wooden wheels were in perfect condition and it didn't tilt drastically. They even had a small space in the back for any belongings they may have. All in all, it was pretty good, except that there weren't any fancy designs on it—actually, there weren't any designs on it at all. Gokudera shrugged. It wasn't like they needed any, and if they want, they could always draw their own.

Then he harnessed the two horses and attached them to the carriage's front. He climbed onto the front and tested the reins. The horses didn't move. Gokudera growled. It was just then that Lambo came back, munching on a small piece of bread roll.

"Amazing! You got us a ride!"

"Duh! I said I would!" Gokudera said. "Just that our _ride,_ won't move," he muttered.

Lambo smiled and dug in his bag which was slung over a shoulder. In his bag was a paper one which held the food he bought for them, including two more he held in his arms. Those he had to put down so that he could look in his bag properly.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for…aha!" He held out two shining red apples. The horse's ears perked up. "Here you go girl," he cooed. The brown horse chomped at it but Lambo pulled away.

"If the two of you want this, you have to behave. Got it? You'll get more later if you do."

Lambo had somehow come to an agreement with the two horses to everyone's surprise.

"Kufufu. Who knew the brat was good with horses."

Lambo looked away defiantly. "Of course I am!" Secretly, he thought, _I__'__m__ glad __they __like __apples.__ Otherwise, __they__'__ll __probably __chew__ my__ arm__ off __by __now!_

"Great, now we need to buy more apples," Gokudera grumbled.

"I'm not buying them," Lambo said immediately. "I already went all over the place so I get to sit!" He opened the door to the carriage and hopped in. Hibari jumped onto the roof and fitfully went to sleep. Mukuro chuckled and also went inside with Chrome. Lambo gulped when he realised who he would be riding with. He shifted away from Mukuro as much as possible. Gokudera stared at them all. He sighed.

"Close the damn door," he growled at Mukuro who chuckled. Gokudera kicked the door shut and pulled the reins to have the horses move towards where he saw a man selling apples.

Buying the apples wasn't a problem; the problem was that Hibari attracted too much attention by lying down on the roof. Gokudera got off and bought the apples quickly. Then he asked where he could find Villafrati. He was told that he'd reach it in two days ride, "just past those hills over there." He'll cross paths with a brick trail, but he was to continue his way with the dirt one, otherwise he'll end up on the post-road, which would lead him straight back to Termini Imerese.

He got back on the driver seat and slapped the reins lightly. There was no reason to go hard on the horses, since they seem to have an attitude of their own and they might as well rebel against the hot headed teen.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

In a cabinet were blank invitations on expensive looking paper. Asari took them out and set them on the table where they would usually just hang around if they happened to be in Primo's office. Now, the large table was covered with stacks of envelopes and letters. Margaret and a butler helped put the completed and signed letters into their envelopes and writing the Famiglia's name on.

G told Giotto to just sit still, on the end of the table with a quill waiting so that he could sign them.

"There are five of us to do the writing, and only one boss who we need to do the signing. Your hand will be too sore if you keep on writing invitations and signing at the same time," G said when Giotto argued.

Once they were finished with a letter, they would give it to Giotto who signed it and handed it to either Margret or the butler to put in an envelope after telling them which famiglia the letter was to go to. When they had a box filled, someone would come in to take it to be delivered as soon as possible.

"I need more ink here!" Knuckle said.

"My hand's too sore!"

"Write with your other one!"

"I can't do that!"

"I've seen you do it before! Don't think you're getting out of this mess," G snapped. Not many people knew that Lampo was ambidextrous, which meant that he could use both hands with equality.

"Damn," Lampo muttered and switched to his right hand.

Personally, Giotto envied him. If he could switch hands while writing up his papers, he won't end up with such a sore hand at the end of each day.

"Come on…we need them all done before noon," Giotto muttered and tapped a finger against the table impatiently and worriedly.

"You'll make us write the invitations sloppy if we rush," G said simply.

"I need more invitations," Daemon said. G tossed him an unopened stack.

"This is what you get for making alliances with so many families," Lampo muttered bitterly. "All the works comes down to us anyways."

"I'd still rather have a lot of alliances than otherwise," Giotto said as he signed another one rather quickly.

"And there are too many parties and balls we have to go to and we can't refuse because we could offend anybody," Lampo said as he looked over the letter he just wrote. He slid it down the table to Giotto and scratched off the name of a famiglia off his list.

"Nufufufu. Someone should do the seating plan."

G swore. "I was planning that just before the bomb came in. Didn't Alaude say that two families got into an argument with each other a while ago? Which famiglia was it?"

"I think it was Estraneo and Cavallone."

"Nah, why would Cavallone pick a fight with Estraneo?" Giotto said, sticking up to his old friend.

"I thought it were the Frasio and Morfello," Lampo interjected. "Alaude made me remember all the reports he got as punishment. I should know."

"Nufufu. No, I thought it were…" they carried on, debating which families shouldn't sit next to each other and where they should be instead.

An hour later, they were still at it. Giotto looked at the time and then at his Guardians' crossed out lists.

"We should be done in about two hours? Good work, everyone." They grunted, too fed up to reply properly.

"We need a menu," G growled.

"Leave that to the chef," Lampo yawned. "He always has the best recipes up his sleeve."

Giotto gave Margaret another letter and asked, "Has anyone told him that we'll be expecting guests in a few days?" They all stopped what they were doing and looked at each other.

"No…we didn't have time to…"

Giotto blanched. They all knew how grumpy their cook could get if he didn't have enough time to gather ingredients for whatever he was planning.

"I'll go tell him!" Lampo ran out.

"Hmph. More like he's using it as an excuse to get a snack," G said although he let out a sigh.

"Eh? Giotto," Asari said.

"Yes?"

"Isn't he coming this year? He said he would." Giotto's hand faltered as he handed a letter to the maid. He began to sweat bullets. His eyes shifted from one point of the room to another.

"Don't mention it…please?" He said weakly and signed the small pile of invitations (which had piled in front of him in just a few seconds) extremely quick.

"What are you talking about?" Knuckle asked.

"Nufufuf. You don't remember?" Daemon smirked at Knuckle who just looked even more confused.

"No, I have no idea who you're talking about. He must be very extreme if Giotto's acting like this." He waved at Giotto, who was sitting as if they were going to be hit by a comet any second and signing his name four invitations a heartbeat.

"You're kidding," G said disbelieving.

"You don't remember him?"

"Remember who?" Lampo asked as he walked in with a plate of snacks. "Oh, I told Leo about the ball, by the way. Apparently he remembered the date all along, so he's prepared to go to war with food at any time."

G furrowed his brows. "And he didn't mention it _once?__"_

Lampo shrugged. "He thought we knew."

"We're talking about you know who," Daemon said.

Lampo raised a tired eyebrow. "What?"

"Nufufu. Giotto and Cozart's master is coming for a visit."

"That old fart?" Lampo's outburst caused G to choke on his drink. G hacked out his lungs as Giotto looked at his friend with concern. He turned to Lampo with a warning look.

"Don't say that!"

"Oh, him! Lampo, don't disrespect your elders like that," Knuckle scolded. "He is a good, strong man who is worthy of respect!"

"He made Giotto take away my naps for two whole months! He even made me train to fight!" Lampo shouted. G rolled his eyes.

"Shut _up._ You're starting to sound like that annoying little brat of a descendant!"

"I _don__'__t_ sound like him," Lambo said and harrumphed. G snorted.

"Calm down," Asari chuckled. "There's no need to argue over that. But why is Giotto so worried about him coming here?"

"Because I haven't found one yet!" Giotto said in dismay.

Margret gasped at the sight of her boss acting like a child who didn't do his homework. Giotto dragged a tired hand on his face and smeared it with ink in the process.

"You were supposed to look for one!" G said. "Don't tell me you've been goofing around when you were supposed to—why did I give you so much time off from your work otherwise?"

Giotto shook his head denying. "I swear! I've been looking!"

"Yeah right! You probably went to play around somewhere!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Be quiet!" Daemon and the butler exclaimed. They stared at each other in surprise and blinked. G and Giotto also looked at the butler.

"P-Polario?" He said the butler's name.

"Giotto, you should know better than act as a child," Polario scolded. Giotto rubbed his head sheepishly. Polario has been with him ever since the start of the vigilant group. Now, he was the head butler of Vongola Mansion.

"Sorry…I just got hyped up."

"Just because you're nervous of facing him doesn't mean that you can make childish remarks with your right-hand man, Giotto."

Margret's jaw dropped even more as she witnessed the head butler scolding Vongola Primo as he would his grandson.

"What are you talking about? You had to find something? Someone?" Lampo asked. "Oooooh! Did he finally make you find a wife? Or—?"

Giotto groaned and slammed his forehead to the table softly.

"Lampo," Polario said. "How old are you?"

"Okay, fine. I'll stop talking," he muttered and leaned on an arm as he continued to write another letter to another famiglia.

"Nothing like that," Giotto said dryly. "He said that he wanted me to find a personal hitman before the next time he we met. Which is why I'm probably not going to live to see my next birthday."

* * *

><p><strong>On their way to Villafrati<strong>

"Hey, we're stopping for the night," Gokudera called to the other Guardians in the carriage and yawned. The sun was just setting along the horizon when he planned to guide the horses to the side of the road just beside a few trees and plenty of grass where they can graze. When Gokudera looked at the carriage's roof, he stood ridged on the spot for a full minute. This was caused by the multiple holes stabbed through the wooden roof by something he definitely knew.

"Oi…"

"Kufufufu."

"DON'T STAB THE DAMN ROOF!"

"Yare yare, you're too loud," Lambo said as he came out. He covered his mouth in a yawn. Mukuro and Chrome also yawned, as yawns were catchy. Hibari also yawned from the other side of the carriage.

The horses snapped at him and he glared into their eyes, making then whiny and back away. He snatched their reins and pulled them close.

"I'll bite you to death if you don't become disciplined this instant." They stopped shuffling around to look at Hibari obediently. Hibari patted them and walked away.

The rest of them who watched this weren't sure if it was expected or not; after all, Hibari seemed to attract animals to him, but those were usually small animals—not…horses… In the end they decided that there was nothing unusual about it and went on with their lives. Gokudera loosened the horses' ties to the carriage and tied them to the trees instead.

"What did you buy?" Gokudera asked Lambo.

"I got you octopus flavoured bread, Bakadera."

Gokudera narrowed his eyes at the Lightning Guardian and thrust the bread at the horses, just to see if they'll eat it. They gave him a look that said, "You've _got_ to be kidding. Give us an apple or two and we'll forget that ever happened."

"Why the hell am I feeding them?" Gokudera demanded.

"Kufufu. Because," Mukuro said with a smirk. "You're in charge here."

"WHAT?"

"You said so yourself. You're in charge so you are feeding them. Kufufuf…"

_Damn__ Pineapple__ Head,_ Gokudera cursed and rummaged through Lambo's bag for two apples, much to Lambo's displeasure.

"Don't just go through my pack!"

"Che." He tossed it back to the cow-boy and went to feed the horses.

_Tch.__ I __can__'__t __believe __I __have__ to __travel __with __them!_ Gokudera thought bitterly. _But __since __it __was __Juudaime __who __requested __it, __I__'__ll __put __up __with __them!_ He made a fist with his free hand and pulled it downwards sharply as if grabbing his determination from thin air. Chrome looked around but found nothing that they could use to light a fire. On their way here, it had rained so everything was damp and wet.

"Mukuro-sama…what are we going to do?"

"Kufufuf," Mukuro said, although he didn't know what they should do as well. "We'll just sleep and get an early start. Here," Mukuro twitched his finger slightly and his red eye changed for a moment. Suddenly, Chrome gasped as her stomach felt bloated as if she had eaten a feast. "That should keep you well until morning," he said with satisfaction. Lambo blinked at them from where he sat.

"Yare, yare…that's not fair. I'm also hungry."

"Oya? Would you like me to cast an illusion on you?" Mukuro asked with a ghostly smile on his lips. Lambo blanched.

"N-No!"

"Kufufuf." The damage was already done. Lambo picked himself up from the ground and began running with Mukuro right behind.

"Hey! Stop running around!" Gokudera exclaimed and chased them. Hibari's eye twitched at the noise and activity in the camp.

"I'll bite you to death for disturbing the peace."

Chrome watched them through her sole eye and giggled slightly. She tilted her head and thought back to old times. Did she ever giggle like this before? Kyoko, Haru, and I-pin's faces appeared in her mind. She smiled. No, before she met her friends, there was nothing to laugh about. Her heart filled with gratitude as she watched these teens who involved her into their world. _Although__ it__'__s __dangerous,_ she thought, _it__'__s __worth__ it __if __I __can __have __friends._

* * *

><p>In the morning they set off again with Mukuro doing the driving this time. He was doing a much better job than Gokudera, much to his dismay. Mukuro didn't even have to hold onto the reins; he used his illusions to guide their steed to the direction they wanted. He could have lured them there with nice illusions, but <em>no,<em> he just had to use horrifying ones that make the horses obey him without a second thought.

_C-Cruel__…_ Chrome, Gokudera, and Lambo had thought when Mukuro told them. Hibari wasn't there at the time, so he knew nothing about the horses. Gokudera didn't want to even mention it because that little bit of detail will most likely cause another fight between those two. So, Hibari stayed on the roof as always and the rest of them were inside, eating sandwiches made with what ingredients they had. Outside they passed endless greenery and hills far away.

"Are we there yet?" Lambo asked sleepily after an hour.

"The man said two days. Do you _think_ we're there yet?"

"Does the day we left the village count as a day?"

"Two days are forty eight hours," Gokudera said. "We arrived there at noon, and left around then. We stopped when it got dark. So that's twelve to nine o'clock. Nine hours." He explained how the sun set and how to calculate the time with the sun and stars, but his audience was soon lost.

"So basically not a day has passed since we've been on the road?" Gokudera scowled as his lesson was interrupted but gave him a sharp nod.

"NOOO!" He wailed and the birds they passed moved away from the sudden noise. Of course, Hibird stayed. He landed on the window sill beside Chrome and peeped. Chrome smiled and a blush reached her face at the cuteness of the little bird.

_"Herbivore! Herbivore!"_

"Huh?"

_"Food! Food!"_

"Oh, you're hungry?" Chrome stared at it. He chirps a confirmation. She crumbled the last pieces of bread crust she had and raised her hand to Hibird. He hopped onto her palm and began pecking. Chrome giggled as the gentile claws ticked her skin. Then the carriage rocked and Gokudera was jolted out of his care free sprawl on the seat to slam his palm quickly on the sill. Otherwise, he would have collided with Lambo and Chrome who sat on the opposite side.

"What the hell!" Gokudera growled and stuck half his body out to glare at Mukuro who was sitting leisurely on the driver seat. Gokudera's skin and hair was blown backwards at the speed they were going.

"Oi! You're going to fast! And stop this instant! You're driving the horses to the ground. They need rest and water! At the rate you're going, they'll die before we reach Villafrati!"

"Kufufu. No way. This is very entertaining."

"Fine then," Gokudera said with a raised brow. "You'll be walking with us for two days instead of riding, since you'd have killed them." Mukuro's smile didn't falter.

"I'll also chain Chrome to the rest of us so you can't take her with you!" Gokudera smirked. He knew that Mukuro won't leave his dear Chrome with the rest of them "savages" to travel by foot. So he will have to stay. _Now,_ Mukuro's smile dropped.

The horses slowly down considerably. They stopped as soon as they could. Everyone got out and Gokudera ordered Lambo to treat the horses immediately. He looked in the back of the carriage and found the grooming kit he was given. They used grass to cool down the horses as they rubbed them on the skin and gave them buckets of water from a stream nearby.

"Damn, I hate the inconvenience of this era!" Gokudera snarled.

"Didn't hey invent cars yet?" Lambo asked.

"No! People tried in 1769 but that didn't work out. Then in 1807, around this time, the world's first internal combustion engine was created but it wasn't very successful …" he began to retell the history of the automobile until Lambo wanted to crash his head against a brick wall. "They still use these blasted carriages in the early eighteen hundreds, which is the time period we're in right now. Understand?"

Lambo yawned tiredly and patted the black horse. "Yeah…a bit."

"Only a bit?!"

"Yatta! It's been half an hour! Let's get going!" Lambo cheered and went back into the carriage. Gokudera pulled himself back from chasing after him and looked for Hibari instead. He was still on top of the carriage. He can see the prefect's Disciplinary Committee jacket blowing in the breeze.

"Hey, prefect, it's your turn to drive," Gokudera said calmly. It was agreed that they would all take turns in the driver seat, even Chrome, because her mother paid for her to get riding lessons for a few years before she realised that her daughter wasn't "worth it," so she was forced to quit. Although actual horseback riding was different than a carriage's, Chrome said quietly that she can do it. Mukuro had a smile of a proud brother on his face when she spoke up.

"I don't take orders from you, herbivore," Hibari now said.

"Tch! We agreed to this before we set off! You agreed to it as well," he added.

"Hn." Hibari grunted and sat up with a grumpy look on his face. He jumped down from where he sat and into the seat. He took up the reins Gokudera handed to him. Gokudera was barely in when they started moving.

"Hey!" He clambered in quickly and shut the door.

"Ne, Bakadera, I also want to drive at least once or twice!"

"You're too much of an idiot to be able to control the horses!"

"That's not fair!" Lambo pouted. "Chrome gets to drive them, and I'm even older than her by two years!" Gokudera punched his head.

"That's not the point! You don't have experience!"

"I do too!"

"When?" Gokudera challenged.

"Young Vongola and Reborn took us riding for a week!" Lambo said with a victorious grin on his face. Gokudera couldn't argue with that. If it was Juudaime and Reborn-san who brought them riding, Lambo would learn how, whether he wanted to or not. Vongola-Styled.

"Fine!"

This was how their days on the road passed for the remainder of the time. When Lambo spotted a brick road going horizontally from theirs, he jumped with excitement. The horses also shifted crazily and the carriage swerved. The sleeping occupants in the carriage were roughly awakened.

"Look! Look! It's the brick road you mentioned!" Lambo cried excitedly. All of them looked out the windows and sure enough, there was a grey path of bricks cutting into their current road. Gokudera smirked.

"_Finally! _Now all we have to do is find that damn person who has the glass vial of liquid!"

"Kufufu. We'll find it faster than you," Mukuro said, motioning to Chrome for the "we" part.

"Yeah right!" Gokudera scoffed. Then he paused. "Come to think about it…don't you think it's strange that we met Zakuro's ancestor here of all places?"

"Kufufu. It's a coincidence."

"But what if all of Byakuran's Guardians' ancestors are here?" Gokudera muttered. "Should we just kill them so we won't have to deal with them in the future?" Mukuro grins.

"Not a bad idea. It's been too long since I've sent anyone to hell. Kufufuf!"

"But!" Chrome said. They turned to her. "Boss said to not cause any trouble…"

"Kufuf. We don't need to listen to that weakling, Nagi," Mukuro said.

"Who are you calling a weakling, Mukuro!" Gokudera yelled as he defended his dear, beloved boss. "And…Juudaime is right. We shouldn't meddle with time. I shouldn't have brought it up," he said grudgingly. _Besides__…__they __don__'__t __seem __to __be __a __bother __in __our __time. __They__ haven__'__t __gone __against__ our __alliance __yet. But I bet they have something up their sleeves._ Mukuro shrugged and smiled as he thought of how he can sniff the person out.

Not long after, they caught up to the traffic going into the city. Gokudera was driving, since he didn't believe that the people would let them in if they saw a cow or a pineapple driving the carriage. He gave his cold glare to anyone who looked his way.

There were farmers going in for the market and people going home from work ion other towns or cities. Some were hunters coming back with their game. Then a contrasting colour from the brown and green caught his eye. He turned his head to the left but frowned when he found nothing. He was pretty sure that he saw light blue but it must have been his eyes playing tricks on him, since he hasn't gotten a good night's rest in three days. He shook his head and faced the front. They moved up a few metres but that was all. Angry, he shouted at the people in front of him to either hurry up or get out of the way. He supported this order with dynamite sticks in his hands.

These people knew enough about weapons from Mafia run-ins to know that those were real, not fake…unlike a certain baseball star. So, like good little children, they moved to the sides of the road even if they didn't fit. Gokudera grinned in victory and had the horses go down the "red carpet". When he arrived at the front he pulled the horses to a stop and stared at the guard who blinked at the gap and at Gokudera's shabby carriage. Then he began to speak as though nothing happened.

"How long will you be staying here, sir?"

"I don't know!"

"Excuse me but I'm going to have to look in the carriage. There are a lot of escaped convicts lately." This boy smelled of trouble. And the boy sleeping on the roof didn't help their cause at all.

"Are you saying that I'm a criminal?" Gokudera demanded angrily.

The guard was calm when he replied. "No, sir. This is just the procedure."

"Tch. Fine! Go ahead! Just don't get hit by a pineapple," he muttered. The guard had a confused face on as he pulled the door handle. Two pairs of eyes and a single one stared back at him; the cow printed boy and the single-eyed girl looked frightened and nervous while the other boy's eyes looked damn freaky.

"Kufufu," Mukuro chuckled when the guard's eyes widened considerably.

"M-Mukuro..you shouldn't scare him," Lambo stuttered.

"Oi! Are you done yet?" Gokudera growled. Sure, he wouldn't mind if they took Mukuro, an escaped convict off his hands, but he knew that Tsuna won't like that.

"Y-Yes…thank you for your cooperation, sirs, madam," he said and nodded at Chrome.

Gokudera ignored the guard and rolled them through the gates.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM <strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-16th**_


	8. Target: Melissa

**Chapter Eight**

"That took so _long,__"_ Lambo complained. "Do you think that we can stop somewhere to rest before starting the search?"

"No?" Gokudera replied in a question format but with such force that it was a solid answer. "Are you crazy? We have to finish searching so we can go on to the next location, and then travel back to Juudaime." Lambo drooped but knew how important things were so he didn't complain. Gokudera stopped them by a fountain in the middle of the square. People looked at them curiously since they were kids without adult companions. They were sort of comforted when a Lambo who oozed maturity stepped out. Why they thought that, no one who knew Lambo personally would never know. He bought them all maps as ordered by Gokudera just moments ago and handed each of them one. Gokudera unfolded his immediately and found where they were.

"We'll meet back here at sunset," Gokudera said. "A full day should give us enough time to find the guy." Mukuro chuckled.

"I'm going this way! Mukuro, you go that way and cover those few blocks," Gokudera pointed to the west side on the map.

"Kufufu. Fine by me. Nagi, let's go." Gokudera turned to Hibari and his mouth stayed open for a few seconds before he shut it. Hibari was already walking away to the east. Gokudera growled.

"Stupid cow, take the south side. I'll take the north."

"I have to go all alone?" Lambo asked.

"Got a problem?"

"N-No…" Lambo sweated as he tried to smile. "I guess I'll be…going now…"

"Tch!" Gokudera raised a hand in farewell and began his search.

* * *

><p><strong>Mukuro and Chrome<strong>

They drew a lot of attention to themselves as they walked down the busy streets which didn't annoy Mukuro one bit. He enjoyed the attention. Chrome on the other hand, didn't like it at all. Being the shy girl she is, she was uncomfortable with so many people stopping just to stare at them until they were out of sight. Many even began to whisper about them, especially the young girls and their friends who were swooning over Mukuro.

"Don't you think he looks handsome?" They would whisper. The others agreed.

"Who do you suppose the girl is? His lover?" Okay, this was definitely disturbing.

"Eh? No way!" One squealed. "They look more like siblings—look at the hair!" Chrome closed her eyes tightly and tried her best to ignore them. Mukuro came to a stop unexpectedly. She bumped into him.

"S-Sorry, Mukuro-sama!"

"Kufuf. It's fine. Look what we have here," he mused and pointed to the shop he stopped in front of. Chrome peered from behind him and slowly read the name. Then she turned to Mukuro.

"A science related repair shop?" She sounded so skeptical.

"It's a possibility," Mukuro defended his choice.

"Hai, Mukuro-sama," Chrome said.

"Let's go in then." They entered the shop and were met with a dark interior. "Come out, whoever you are," he said, sensing a presence other than then in the room.

"Hello, hello," a raspy and old male voice greeted them. Upon closer inspection, they noticed that the shop had a second floor. There was a balcony so that they could see into the second floor. A man was leaning against his cane near the railing.

"What can I do for you, boy?" Mukuro's eyebrow twitched at the word.

"Oya? I am no boy, old man." The old man sighed.

"Oh, dear God…the manners the young ones have these days are worsening."

"Do you own this place?" Mukuro demanded impatiently.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," he replied steadily.

"Are you familiar with an inventor named Talbot?"

The man stared at him strangely. "Everyone knows Talbot. He is the famous inventor who works for the Vongola Famiglia."

"Have you seen him before? Has he traded with you?" Mukuro couldn't believe that he was asking this man for help…but he wanted to beat that octopus and skylark so badly. The old man's face perked up at the mention of trade, just like Rosso's.

"No," he said slowly. Mukuro was about to retort that he was lying to them when he continued, "I have not, but my granddaughter might've. She is the Gatherer you want to talk to. I am simply her guardian."

"Where's the girl?" Mukuro asked. If the man withheld this piece of information from him, he swore that he'll make him talk.

"She went out. Said something about meeting up with friends down at Corsiva Scivoloso—hey!" Mukuro and Chrome were already leaving. Slippery Lane, huh? What a funny name for a street, Mukuro thought.

* * *

><p><strong>Hibari and Hibird<strong>

"Find me the herbivore that has a glass vial of blue liquid," Hibari ordered after trying to find anyone like that himself. Hibird peeped and flew off. Hibari continued walking with his two tonfa hidden. No one looked out of the ordinary. Shoppers walked from stall to stall, conversing with one another and buying what they needed. Hibari looked at the buildings. E could tell that it wasn't a rich community at all. And the houses were close together. He knit his eyebrows.

"I hate crowds."

"Hibari! Hibari!" Hibird flew back. Hibari raised his hand and allowed Hibird to perch on it. On his hand was a berry he plucked from a tree.

"Well?" He said.

"Found! Found!"

"Where?" Hibari demanded. Hibird pecked at the berry and flew off to lead his master to the female with a blue vial. People stepped out of his way when he chased after the little bird. Thinking that it was a game, the little, bored, children with their mothers ran after Hibari. Gasping with shock, those who were able to, ran after their children as well. Before anyone knew it, there was a parade of people running after a fluffy, small yellow bird. Hibari saw the tail he had produced out of the corner of his eye. He growled loudly.

"Stop crowding, herbivores!" The boys and girls shied away from the angry teen and crowded into a small clump of kids, staring at Hibari with fear.

_Only__ herbivores __would__ crowd__ together __like __that,_ Hibari thought. The mothers were catching up. Hibari continued on his way before they could follow. For a moment he had lost sight of Hibird, but he soon found his bird again when he turned a corner. A laugh which sounded of bells made its way to his ears. In front of him was a less crowded street. It looked like plaza. A park was centred in the middle with benches built to the edge. Hibari smirked when he saw his bird fly to land on a herbivore's hand. He glowered when he saw who the herbivore looked like.

* * *

><p><strong>Lambo<strong>

He was eating a slice of cake while slowly walking around, stopping when anything he passed by interested him—there were many things that interested him. Then he almost slipped but caught himself by grabbing onto a wall.

"Haha, you have to be more careful here," a female's voice remarked. Lambo turned around and showed her a blank face.

"Why is it so slippery here?"

"What do you expect from Slippery Lane? It's slippery here!"

"That makes no sense at all!" Lambo shook his head and ignored the girl. He passed by a ring shop and paused to look. He smiled inwardly at the cow-decorated rings. One caught his eye. It was silver with the outline of several bulls pierced through so that if he wore it, he could see his skin. The ring was about two centimetres in height. A green three dimensional bull-shaped gem was also on it.

"How much is this?" He asked. The man looked at the ring. He named his price. Happy with it, Lambo dug into his pocket to get the coin. Then he stopped when he realised that he had given back Gokudera their stash of money.

"That's a pretty ring," the same girl from before commented. Lambo looked to his left, where the girl was. Both his eyes opened before shutting one again. The girl looked familiar. Where had he seen her?

"Yeah."

"Are you buying it?"

"I was planning to, but I forgot to bring my money," Lambo said sadly. The girl shared his sadness for a moment. The stall owner swore that he could feel the gloominess seeping out of the two youngsters. Suddenly, the younger girl brightened.

"I'll buy it for you! I have some extra money on me right now!"

"What? Really?" Lambo's childish self took over him for a moment before he felt guilty and regained his composure. "W-Well, I don't want to be a bother, you know? Go spend that on something else that you actually want." The girl shook her head smiling.

"It's fine! The money's not mine anyways." Lambo opened both of his eyes. The girl had a mischievous glint in her eyes. He grinned.

"Snuck it from someone you live with?" Lambo remembered taking a bit of Tsuna's money now and then when he was still about five or six. Sometimes he stole some from Gokudera if the octopus head annoyed him too much.

* * *

><p><strong>I AM NOT ENCOURAGING YOU GUYS TO STEAL FROM PEOPLE WHO ANNOY YOU! XD<strong>

* * *

><p>"My grandpa, actually," she said grinning back. She turned to the man. "Here you go!"<p>

"Nice doing business with you, little miss," the man smiled.

"Thanks," Lambo told the girl. "What's your name?"

"I'm Melissa! Who are you?"

"Lambo," he replied. She laughed and commented on his "interesting" name. Lambo scowled and shrugged.

"Do you know anyone who collects or sells scientific things? Like materials that inventors or scientists use?" The girl cocked her head and blinked innocently after shifting her eyes to the left.

"No?"

"Ah…okay. Thanks anyways. I'd better get going. Ciao!" Lambo raised a hand and left, putting the ring on the middle finger of his right hand. The girl stared after him for a moment before darting away. Just then, Lambo paused and narrows his eyes suspiciously. Then they snapped open in surprise. So that's why her actions looked familiar!

"She…was lying!" He exclaimed. People near him looked at him weirdly and continued on their way, throwing glances at him as they went. He spun around and ran back to the place he last saw her. Why would she lie? Was she hiding the one they were looking for? He thought that he should make sure with her before jumping to any conclusions.

"Where'd the girl go?" He asked the stall owner who was currently speaking to another customer.

"Yes, and this gem—eh? Girl? She uh…that way, I think…" the man pointed to his right. Lambo thanked him and ran straight ahead.

* * *

><p><strong>Gokudera<strong>

He was having no luck whatsoever. He tried asking many people, but they either ran away from him or shook their heads fiercely as he asked them.

_What__ the__ hell __is __wrong __with __them?_ Gokudera thought. His scowl deepened. He happened to catch himself doing his in a store window and cocked his head. He scoffed as he remembered something his sister mentioned to him a while ago. Bianchi said that he's better lose the glare if he wanted some girls. At the time, he had told her that he didn't _want_ any girls to swarm around him and disturb him from doing a right-hand man's work. She simply shook a finger at him with a lecturing sort of tone in her voice. Basically, his glare scared almost anyone with a sane brain away. He took in a deep breath.

_Come __on, __Hayato!__ You__'__re __Juudiame__'__s __right-hand__ man!__ You __can __do __something __as __simple__ as __asking__ someone__ something! __Once __I__'__m__ done __here, __I __can __be __reunited __with __Juudaime! _His smile twitched until it became a fully fledged one. He turned around with his eyes beaming for Juudaime.

"Hey! Do you know where I can find a guy who trades things in with inventors?" He asked the first passerby he came across. He was in luck, because he was sure that he couldn't keep up the smile much longer.

"Sure! You just go down this street and turn left. It's the house with a weird scientists' bottle hanging by the door."

"Thank you!" Gokudera said and gave the man two thumbs up. Turning around, he scowled so hard that people literally ran away from him.

Juudaime will be so proud of me! Gokudera grins to himself.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile with Tsuna…<strong>

Tsuna sneezes as he closes the lid to the tin box.

"Haha, Tsuna, do you have a cold or something?" Yamamoto asked. "Maybe you should rest a bit." They've been working around the clock with only a few hours rest, so he couldn't blame anyone if they got a cold. Tsuna smiles and shakes his head.

"It's nothing. Just a sneeze," he says to comfort Yamamoto. He nods and gets back to work. Tsuna however, looks towards the direction that the others went to.

_Why __do__ I __have__ a__ bad __feeling __about__ this?_ He asked. He laughs inwardly. _It__'__s__ as __if __Gokudera-kun__'__s __doing __something__ unreasonable __again._

* * *

><p>Gokudera jogged the rest of the way to the exact same shop that Mukuro had entered just half an hour ago.<p>

"Oi! Is anyone in here?" He demanded. Metal clattered to the floor with a loud clang. Someone cursed loudly and growled.

"Good god! What is with everyone today?" Gokudera hears someone mutter. A shadow looms over the railing as a figure leans upon it. He looks at the old man's wrinkled face. "What do you want?"

"You know anyone who deals with giving missions to inventors for their materials?" He demanded rudely. The man groaned and sniffs.

"Not this darn thing again! I already told the other lad that she left to meet up with friends! Why don't you go ask that other young boy who came here just a while ago and stop DISTRUBING me?" The man's patience was wearing out with all these interruptions he keeps on getting. First the pair of strange teens with green uniforms, then a scary dark haired one who was accompanied by a bird, and now this! What was going on? He was beginning to worry that his granddaughter had gotten herself into some trouble.

"Well I'm not saying a word! You can go ask the others who came around!" he snapped.

"Who else came?"

"I don't know! Some other lads who looked like you! Now get out!" He threw a screwdriver at Gokudera and pulled something to cause a hanging gate to fall to the ground. Gokudera leaped back just in time to avoid getting stabbed through and ducked to avoid the screwdriver.

"You damn old man! I was just asking!" Gokudera screamed in frustration and kicked the gate—which wasn't very bright because he hurt his toe more than the iron bars.

"Damn!" He limped away and swore. Looking around, he found a ladder attached to the side of the building. He grimaced. If he can't find the guy on the ground, he'll go by the roofs. And so he began to climb. The rungs were slightly rusted but still strong enough to hold him. It was two storeys high and he passed over without breaking a sweat. He scanned the area, thinking of what he should look for.

_According__ to__ the__ old __man, __the __guy__'__s __actually __a __girl. __From__ the __way __he__ worried__ about __her, __maybe __she __is __a __relative__ of __his. __Hm__…_ Gokudera thought back to what he saw that day. The blue hair he _thought_ he saw was starting to seem suspicious… _Again,__ why __was __Zakuro__'__s __look-a-like__ here?__ Does__ that __mean__ the __rest __of __their__ ancestors __might __also __be __here?__ Che.__ That__'__s __idiotic__ thinking._

Although he thought this, he thought of anything blue relating to Byakuran. Then it suddenly hit him. It was right in front of their noses and he didn't even notice! He immediately stood up, ignoring the dulling pain in his foot. He scanned the area again with an actual purpose this time. Then he spotted it. Time to go...and catch some bluebells. He jumped onto the next roof, which was barely a metre away from the last. Then he slid down a pole to the ground, surprising a group of onlookers. Gokudera stumbled and fell forwards slightly before regaining his balance. The crowd began to clap and whistle, thinking that he was doing a trick or something. Gokudera scowled at them and pushed through the crowd. He soon slid on his shoes and his arms flung like windmills. He forced his upper body to go forwards so he wouldn't slip and locked eyes with blue hair. Ignoring the strange stares he was receiving, he charged forward.

Unknown to him, Mukuro, Chrome, Lambo, Hibari and Hibird were doing the same, coming from different directions.

"Hey you!" They all shouted and reached her at the same time. She screamed.

"I'll bite you to death."

"W-What?" She said in fluent Japanese with a quaver. "I didn't do anything!"

"Melissa! You were hiding something when I asked you!" Lambo said the same time Mukuro said,

"Girl, are you the Gatherer the old man was talking about?" Gokudera watched Lambo and Mukuro curiously.

"Melissa? Gatherer? What the hell? And how do you know her name?" He directed the sharp question at Lambo. He was also surprised to find out that the person they may be looking for was a girl about twelve years old! She had long hair that had blue clips on it. Her eyes matched her hair and her fair skin paled at the sight of them all.

"L-Lambo? You know these boys?" She asked teary eyed.

"A-Ah…they're…yeah. I know them," Lambo resigned with a sigh. She hid behind him when she was directed with stares from the rest of them. Lambo was surprised by her actions and moved away so they could all see her.

"Melissa," Lambo sad slowly. "You wouldn't happen to be the Gatherer they are talking about…would you?" Her eyes darted to all directions of the street with a frightened look.

"Shh," she whispered. "There are a lot of evil mafia men in this town."

Gokudera swore.

"Kufufu. Take us somewhere we can talk privately. Or else…" Mukuro said.

"M-Mukuro-sama!"

"You're scaring her!" Lambo complained. "If you do, then how are we supposed to help Young Vongola collect the things he needs for us to go back?"

"Shut up!" Gokudera and Hibari hissed. They glared at each other.

"Hn." Hibari crossed his arms across his chest and turned so his left side was facing the others while he glared at anyone trying to approach them, to keep the crowding to a minimum.

"Didn't she just say she was scared of mafia men?" Gokudera growled softly at Lambo and showed his fist.

"Did you say Vongola?" the young girl piped up. "The vigilant group?"

"Yes…" Gokudera said slowly with a frown. "What about it?"

"If you work for the Vongola, then I know that you aren't bad people," she said, looking at them skeptically.

"Don't lump me together with those weaklings/herbivores," Mukuro and Hibari growled.

The girl shrieked. "C-Come to think about it…how do I know whether you are truly part of the Vongola? " She stuttered. She was met with silence.

"How do we prove that we're Vongola?" Lambo wondered out loud.

"Baka!" Gokudera growled but didn't produce an answer himself. How _were_ they supposed to prove that they were a part of the Vongola Famiglia?

Melissa looked at them with an inquisitive brow raised.

"Eh…can't prove that you're in the Vongola?" She waited for a heartbeat. "Bye!" Off she went down an alleyway.

"Oi!" Gokudera exclaimed and ran after her.

"I'll bite you to death," Hibari growled and gave chase. Chrome and Mukuro also ran. Lambo scratched the back of his head.

"Yare yare. Not this again. Haven't I run enough for the day?" His shoulders sagged. "I suppose not."

"_Nah,_ nah-nah, nah-_nah_-nah!" Melissa sang as she dodged carts and people. The tenth generation bumped into carts and people, causing complaints from the owners. She ducked into an alleyway as the pursuers were busy trying to get away from the mob of angry townsmen. She pulled out a small glass vial filled with blue liquid from a hidden dress pocket. She tilts the vial in the light so that it sparkles and giggles.

"They'll never get this," she hummed. "It took me months to find it."

"Hah! Found you!" Gokudera said triumphantly. The young girl jumps in surprise and squeals. She quickly pulls something form her hair. It was a clip with a blue pearl—or so they thought. She threw it to the ground at their feet and it exploded.

"Crap!" Gokudera cursed as they were enveloped in a smoke screen. He heard running feet and said, "She's running away!"

"Then chase her!" Lambo said. Off they went again.

_I__'__d__ better __be __more __careful,_ Melissa thought in her head and she jumped over a puddle. _I__ only __have__ three __of __those __left!_ Turning her head around was a bad idea. She nearly tripped at the sight of the teens gaining on her.

"Hm, I wonder what they want it for," she mused. Thinking of all the scientific calculations she knew, she concluded that they could want this item for only three reasons: one, they were trying to poison someone who had the immune system of an elephant; two, they wanted to create a nuclear bomb that can put a hole in the universe and three…test the theory of time travelling. She risked a look behind her as she turned a corner. Her eyes narrowed in confusion. There were only two of them chasing her. What happened to the others? Her mouth was set into a grim line when she realised that she was being herded like sheep.

Gokudera and Lambo were the ones who were chasing her. Hibari went by the rooftops and the two illusionists said that they'll come up with something. Off they went.

Mukuro and Chrome appeared in an alley just metres away from where they last left the carriage.

"Nagi, we're going to drive that."

"Mukuro-sama, shouldn't we help them?"

"Kufufu. But we are." Chrome tilted her head, her sole eye wondering. They approached the carriage and she petted the horses. The two of them clambered onto the driver's seat, which could fit two people coincidentally. Mukuro took the reins and urged the horses to the direction the Vongola boys were in.

Hibari kept an eye out on the blue haired girl. She held a piece of the puzzle that can transport him back to Namimori. There was no way in hell he was going to let her get away. He jumped over another gap between houses and continued his chase on the rooftops. When he thinks that it's the right time, he'll go down and bite her to death and then confiscate the item.

"Run faster, stupid cow!" Gokudera barked at Lambo.

"You're the one to talk, Bakadera! You're running as slow as I am!"

"Am not!"

"You smoke too much!" Lambo retorted. Gokudera punched his head.

"I quite a while ago!"

"Hah!" Lambo argued. "You should still be smoking if I am my five year old self!"

"You really _are_ am idiot!" Gokudera shouted as he moved past a pet shop with barking dogs. True, when Gokudera first arrived in Namimori, he smoked, but with the resolve to protect his boss, he knew he needed a long life so he made himself quit in an instant. If there was ever a cigarette in his mouth again, it was never lit.

"Stop!" He shouted at the girl.

"Nu-uh!" She called back. "I can give this to you if you can do something for me~!"

"Like…what?" They were five metres apart from her.

"You have to find me six silver Mariette rings! They have to be bought and mined from this area or else I won't accept them!"

"What are Mariette rings?" Lambo asked Gokudera who shrugged. Melissa stopped abruptly and turned around. She raised her left finger. On the middle finger was a silver ring with extremely girly designs on it.

"You want us to go around town buying _that!__"_ Gokudera growled. Melissa looked at them innocently.

"Anyways, it has to be bought with honest money because my moral code doesn't cover stealing, which means I won't be able to take it. They have to be mined from this area because the silver here is the only one that will produce the solute I need." Gokudera's glare softened as he, a fellow "science" person, understood her predicament. But his glare hardened again. "And the girly parts of it? I can't go around buying that!"

"It's not my fault the person who makes them likes it like this! She's the one who designs them! The only way that I know it's hers is by the trademark girly style! The silver is the best; melted at the perfect temperature and set to cool for the most precise time!"

"You're crazy!" Gokudera roared. "I'm not doing that!" He snatched the glass vial from the pocket. She shrieked. Lambo ran after Gokudera.

Melissa shook with anger as they cheated the Gatherer's Rule.

"You're not getting away with this!" She screamed at them and pulled something out from another fold of the dress with her left hand. It was a small pole about thirty centimetres long and an inch thick with a light hue of blue, showing its rareness and being of the best craftsmanship. The Mariette ring on her finger lit a blue flame. Yes, the Mafia weren't the only ones with the Dying Will Flames. People like them found out about the flames on their travels as Gatherers.

Hibari raised an eyebrow as he watched. Hibird perched on his hair.

Both sides of the pole shot outwards until it was as tall as her. It continued until it was twice her size. She pole vaulted through the air. Good thing she wore pants beneath her dress. Once her pole straightened and tossed her high in the air, she followed the momentum and allowed herself to be thrown forwards. Right into the path of the two thieves.

"Aah!" Lambo squeaked. Gokudera turned around and scowled.

"Give it back!" Melissa demanded. Gokudera smirked.

"Make me." The street was empty when she landed. As she landed, she crouched on her left foot as her right was straight and spun in a full circle, the pole with it, still kneeling. Her hair whipped around and landed back on her back she she stopped. Gokudera and Lambo had to jump to avoid their feet from being swiped from under them. Lambo wasn't so lucky and fell with a painful groan.

She charged at Gokudera and he was ready to block her.

Her ring flamed again and the pole turned into a spear.

Gokudera swore and leaped back, dragging the cow with him. He crouched as he watched her cautiously. The little girl with the blue spear looked scary. Even scarier was the fact that she wielded it like someone who was a professional at using that weapon. But at the same time, it looked hilarious.

"Give. It. Back."

"No," Gokudera said without hesitation. He stored it carefully away out of sight and suppressed a laugh.

"If you don't…" she threatened. She paused and turned her head to the right. Gokudera and Lambo did the same. A pair of very familiar horses rode their way with two familiar people with two familiar pineapple hair styles in the driver seat.

"Kufufu. I told you we'll help them, Nagi," Mukuro said. "All the better, since I'm collecting debts." Gokudera scowled.

Melissa pouted. "Hey! No fair!"

"There's no fairness in fighting, brat!" Gokudera laughed and stood up.

"Oya? That girl looks strong," Mukuro chuckled. "Maybe I can torture her? It will be better than all the weaklings I've gone through since we've arrived."

"No! This is my fight! Stay out of it!" Gokudera growled.

Mukuro's eye twitched. "Nagi."

"Hai, Mukuro-sama?"

"Take the reins."

"H-Hai!" She let out a shout when they were suddenly tossed into her hands. Mukuro appeared in front of Melissa and stabbed at her only to have it reflected by the spear. A musical clang vibrated from it. Mukuro raised an eyebrow.

"Kufufu. Where did you get that?" She stuck her tongue out.

"Neeh!"

BOOM!

Gokudera tossed a dynamite stick. Melissa used the spear/pole to vault upwards. She looked down to stick her tongue out at them, only to find one of them smirking and the other one scowling like a jealous child.

Thanks to her quick reflexes, she avoided having a concussion caused by a silver tonfa.

"What?" She dodged a blow from the bloodthirsty teen.

"I'll bite you to death!"

"But I'm a little girl!" She whined. Something in Hibari's eyes told her that he didn't care because he knew that she wasn't any _ordinary_ herbivore-girl.

They fought for a while.

Then Hibari hit Melissa and she flipped. Little dots fell from her dress and down to the carriage and the three boys. Gokudera recognised them as bombs.

"Get out of the way!"

"Nagi! Ride!" Mukuro barked and jumped away. Chrome obeyed instantly. The bombs exploded just seconds after she left with the horses galloping. Melissa changed her grip on her spear and jabbed at Hibari who avoided it. His right foot hit the edge of the building. Melissa stabbed the spear into the floor and kicked out with both feet to send Hibari tumbling downwards. Hibari gave her a glare and turned so he would land on his feet. His eyes widened when he realised that he would instead land on top of the carriage. He landed lightly on it with barely a sound although he was supposed to crash with the impact. Melissa ignored them and landed on Gokudera, whose knees buckled.

"Give it back!" She pouted with a growl.

"Get off me!"

"No!"

"Now!" Gokudera elbowed her so that she was forced to move.

"Give that back!" She clawed at him for it and sensed someone behind her: Mukuro, who was just grinning at them as if he was having fun.

"Oi, a little help here!" Gokudera scowled as he thought of ever asking Mukuro for help.

"Kufufu. No thanks. This is too entertaining," he replied. "I'll be back after a snack. I'm getting hungry. Just like that, he walks off. Gokudera glared at the illusionist's back and then at Lambo, who was staring t them in fright. No help there, that was sure.

"Geez! I'm surrounded by idiots! Ow!" She pinches his check and makes him scowl before being pushed off. Gokudera ran away and into an empty building.

"Khe! That little brat thinks that she can take it back from me," he snorts and his hand goes into the pocket with the vial. "Now all I need to do is go back to Juudaime…" His sentence is left unfinished when he pulls the pocket inside out. No vial. He checks the other pockets frantically and checks them a second time…nothing.

"That brat picked my pocket… stealing is against her moral code my _ass!_" Gokudera growled as he went back out. The chase was on.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

"He wants you to find a hitman?" Lampo looked at him, puzzled. "Why?"

"Giotto needs protection from enemies," Knuckle said reasonably.

"I don't need someone to risk their life protecting me for money," Giotto argued, not liking the idea of hiring a hitman.

"Do neither of you understand the definition of _hitman?_" G asked in dismay. "It's a paid killer! Not a body guard! Although... the very good ones can double up as one..."

"One more reason for why I don't need one," he muttered.

"You don't _want_ one, you _need_ one, ," G corrected and tossed his boss the last of his invitations. Giotto sighed and signed it.

"Nufufu. The Vongola should have its own assassination squad."

Okay. Giotto was putting his foot down there. "Absolutely not!"

Polario coughed into his gloved fist and tapped his watch. "Giotto, you're running out of time."

"Thank you…" Giotto glanced at the time and saw that it was way passed their usual breakfast hour. "And I appreciate you two putting up with me," Giotto said when he signed and stamped the last invitation. He turned to Margret. "Do you know whether there is still food in the kitchen?" Giotto asked.

She nodded hastily. "Yes, yes! We'll set the table right away!"

"There's no need to do that," Asari said with a smile.

Margret shook her head and walked out efficiently. The rest of the family cleaned up the mess on the table before following.

**Later that day…**

"Did you get the candles?" Giotto asked a passing servant who was decorating the ballroom. He nodded. He glanced at other servants who were lifting decorations onto the walls. His eyes widened when he saw that the colours corresponded to different famiglias in negative ways. No one wanted to see their family colours entwined with their enemy's.

"No, no, no! That won't do! Put the purple one instead," he said and ran to them. G walked in and slapped his hand to his forehead at the sight of Giotto in his dress shirt and pants, climbing a ladder.

"Giotto, LET THEM DO THEIR JOB!" The said person turned his head.

"O-Oh, G, there you are! I still didn't get the wine yet! Do you think you can go with me to the store?"

"They don't open until the afternoon—besides, what happened to our own wine? We should still have plenty in the wine cellar." Giotto rubbed his cheeks, which G noticed were still inked. He'd better wash that before it sticks for a few days. G opened his mouth to tell him that but the next words distracted him.

"They're gone!"

"…Say _what!_ How can they be gone?" G demanded. "We had some from fifty years ago and some even older! _Priceless!_" Giotto sighed helplessly and gave his right-hand man a desperate face.

"How am I to know? This is why I need to get more! And quick! Do you know how many people are coming?" G raised his blistered hand and waved it.

"Of course I know. Stop panicking."

"I'm not panicking," Giotto retorted while looking around to see if the servants got every little speck of dust. "It's a good thing there weren't any fights in this room. But there needs to be more light in here…Excuse me Hugio," Giotto called to someone. "Could you move the curtains to allow more light through?" The boy gave Primo a salute and dragged a friend to help him out.

"Are you _listening?__"_ G asked.

"Yes, yes , I am—Polario, there you are! Is everyone ready? Do you need anyone to replace the two butlers? I heard that a few were sick."

"We are fine, Giotto," Polario said, much calmer than the young boss. "I assure you that we have everything under control. Have you someone to check on the security around the mansion yet?" he asked.

"I'll do that right now."

"Stop taking other people's jobs!" G shouted.

"Alaude's not here to do it!"

"He has followers, goddamn it! They can take care of things there."

"G!" Knuckle frowned. He was on the balcony looking into the ballroom. That was where their family would stand for the introduction before descending the stairs to the guests.

G grunted an apology.

"More importantly, did you think of what you'll be saying?"

"I didn't," Giotto muttered under his breath. "I can't exactly use what I said last year. I'll think of something."

"You're not going to think of anything if your mind is preoccupied on other things," G said. How long has he known this genius, Giotto? There was absolutely no way his best friend can think under stress, which was why G did most of the things for him, trying to relieve it.

"You can plan it tomorrow."

"Did you finish the seating plan?" Giotto suddenly asked.

"Who do you think I am? You?" G wasn't about to let Giotto know about his small acts of kindness. Otherwise, who knows how mushy or indebted Giotto will act afterwards?

"That's mean, G…" Giotto sweat-dropped and scratched the back of his head. "Oh no!"

"What?" An alert G asked.

"The furniture! How long has it been since they've seen the light? Years! Someone has to clean them!" The people who worked for this man looked at him as if he was kidding. Then they laughed softly at this man's expression. Maybe they'll keep quiet and enjoy these rare moments of panic coming from their boss.

"Primo, I can't believe I am seeing the most powerful Vongola Boss in history like this," a deep voice commented. He stepped out from the shadows and walked towards Giotto and G. Polario excused himself and hurried off, anxious to get away from the mysterious man with a green lizard on his shoulder.

"Reborn," Giotto greeted. The aura around this man always put him on the alert and into his stiff, formal mode. Reborn raised an eyebrow and tilted his hat as a reply.

"If you were my student, you'll be going through months of training as punishment," he said, not even trying to keep his voice down. Giotto frowned. Was that a smirk he saw beneath the fedora? _This__ hitman __is __tricky,_ G thought.

"Wow," G's hand which was moving up to his mouth with a lit cigarette froze and slowly went back to his side. He stared at Reborn for a good five minutes with the latter staring patiently back.

"Yes?"

"You're a hitman," he said.

"I am," Reborn said respectfully, unlike his students who might as well insult the First Generation's intelligence.

Giotto looked from G to Reborn confusingly..

"G…you're not…no way. We can't involve him!"

"What would you rather?" G asked with a raised eyebrow. "Have a stand-in or none at all?"

Giotto's shoulders sagged after having an internal fight with his conscious. "Alright…"

"Reborn, we need a hitman for Giotto during the time of the party," G said. "Do you think you can help us out?"

Reborn said nothing, with a blank face. "Who's asking?"

"Me, Primo's—" G paused as it dawned on him. It should be the _boss_ who discusses such matters…as a matter of fact, it should be done privately. To think that he almost took over Giotto's role. This just told him that Reborn was indeed a first rate assassin. Assassins only accept requests from the person they will be working for and no one else. It was just formality, but it was to be done properly.

"_Primo,__"_ G said, putting extra force on the word. Giotto nodded with his eyes closed. Reborn still looked at them blankly. Or maybe it was just that his onyx eyes made them hard to read.

"Reborn, would you share a word with me, privately?" Giotto asked formally. Reborn nodded.

"Of course." Giotto began walking with the other two behind him.

In Giotto's study, Reborn stood across from Giotto's desk whereas Giotto sat and G stood behind his right.

"Reborn, I would like to request a job you do for me that will last for at least ten days. It will consist of guarding me from the shadows. No one other than my Guardians is to know that will be working for me as my personal hitman. You will be paid accordingly…" Giotto continued on just ranting off what was carved into his mind from a long time ago. When he was finished, he waited for Reborn's answer.

Reborn took off his hat and bowed.

"I would be honoured to be Vongola Primo's hitman. After all, it's not an opportunity which comes up every day." Giotto sighed with relief and hoped that nothing bad will actually happen which would involve killing.

"Thanks, Reborn. I'm glad you agreed…"

"But," Reborn said.

"But?" Giotto pondered nervously.

"I will treat this job as a temporary one. I answer to no one but the Ninth."

"Oh...I see," Giotto said. "That's fine by me, Reborn." Reborn smirked. Even without his intuition, he knew it didn't mean anything good. "What are you plotting?" He asked suspiciously.

"Me? Nothing," Reborn said innocently.

"You're going to need an alias, since it won't be good if your name is mentioned in the wrong time frame," G said.

"You don't need to worry about that." Of course, Reborn already had millions of pseudonyms ready at his disposal. "One more question," Reborn added with extra curiosity in his voice that showed he already knew the answer to the question but wanted to ask it anyways. "Why are you so anxious to hire a hitman?"

Giotto's eyes widened with nervousness. Ah...how should he start...

* * *

><p><strong>Villafrati<strong>

Gokudera had been searching for that blasted girl for two days. _TWO__ DAYS!_ What should he be doing now, instead of looking for a brat? One may ask. The answer is so obvious Gokudera couldn't even bring it up. During his search, he was also looking grudgingly for the rings she requested; there were always two ways to winning a game.

Two days before, he had hunted down Lambo who was stuffing his face with food.

**#$%^&*!**

"Look for these!" Gokudera said after beating the poor boy into a pulp.

"Nnnn…" Lambo said and looked through his eye that wasn't swollen. His puffy cheeks made it harder to understand him. "Wha…?"

"Look for these and we can go home to Juudaime!"

"Finally! Ah wash grring trrd uv shish plash." (Finally! I was getting tired of this place!)

"You don't even look like you're bored. Tch!" Gokudera yelled and tossed the Lightning Guardian the papers he drew sketches of the rings on.

"Yuh kidding," Lambo said. (You're kidding.)

"Meet me back here in two days!" He gave Lambo a bag of coins and gave him a last warning. "If you let _anyone_ steal that…or if I find out you spent it on sweets…I'll blow you up!" Lambo nodded fiercely.

Then he went to find Mukuro to see whether he will cooperate or not. He found him casting illusions on innocent people who were too annoying and weak. Gokudera didn't exactly see Mukuro, but he could instantly tell that the illusionist was around because of the way the men were acting. Obviously they were seeing somethin that wasn't there. So, it was either that this town was infested with madmen, or it was Mukuro getting bored.

"Hey, Mukuro! Show yourself!"

"Oh be quiet!" A bleary eyed man said and swung a punch at Gokudera. He took a step back and caught the fist. The man kicked and punched with his other limbs but Gokudera intercepted them. When he tried to land his own, he found that he couldn't. A vein twitched.

"You pineapple bastard, stop messing with people!"

"Kufufu. Gokudera Hayato…what did you just call me? Should I possess your body so I can get Decimo?" the man Mukuro was possessing asked with a smirk. Gokudera scoffed.

"Even if you do—NOT SAYING THAT YOU CAN—Juudiame will not be fooled so easily!" Then Mukuro's trident appeared against Gokudera's neck, choking him. Gokudera carefully felt his left sleeve with his left hand to see if his tiny bombs were in place. They were.

"Listen here, you," Gokudera spit out. "The sooner we leave the sooner we can go after those two!"

"Kufufu. Do you really think that I'm worried? No one can sway my thinking emotionally."

Gokudera's eyes narrowed.

"So—cough—you're saying you aren't worried about Dokuro, huh!" Mukuro cocked an eyebrow.

"She can defend herself from a weakling like the weak clouds." Gokudera's lip twitched and struggled to breath as the trident's pole pressed against his windpipe. Right. Talking didn't work.

"Even if you aren't in a hurry to leave, _I_ am! At least try to collect the rings!" He tossed the bomb and protected his body as he jumped backwards and continued on his search. He had no time to hang around the illusionist.

All that happened two days ago and now he was still looking for that girl with no hope. At least he'd come across one of those disgusting rings in a shady market. He more like stole it and left money behind but he considered that as paying. Just five more to go…then he spotted the girl. He smirked and snuck up on her. But she noticed him and ran for it.

Melissa grinned and stopped to catch her breath in a dark alley to watch Gokuera run past.

"That fool. He's been chasing me for two days with no luck!"

"Then I suppose I'm the lucky man," a voice said behind her.

Melissa had no chance to turn around. Large, strong hands grabbed at her arms and another arm to her face with a cloth filled with chloroform. She struggled to get free and her eyes were wide with fear as she smelled it. Her muffled shouts were drowned by the market noise. The strong scent of tobacco came from her attacker.

With her hands in an iron grip, she couldn't reach for her weapons. Instead, she used her legs to kick at her attacker. The buckets of paint next to her tipped over. She stuck a foot into one and flung it. It hit her assaulter square in the head but the hands didn't loosen their grip.

She swore in her head. Her hand dropped to the ground and an unsuspected small vial rolled out with barely a sound and stopped when it hit a sack. The sack tilted and covered it like a roof. Her last thought was that she hoped that those self-proclaimed Vongola boys will find the vial before someone truly evil does.

Then her vision went black.

* * *

><p>"Gokudera! Did you find her?" Lambo shouted from the other side of the street.<p>

"No! It's like she disappeared from the face of the Earth!" He replied. Lambo sighed.

"Where could she be hiding? And I found one of the rings..." He gave it to Gokudera who glared at it.

"You're the one who had a proper conversation with her! You should know more," Gokudera stated.

"Kufufufu," Mukuro said and appeared beside them. "She's not at her grandpa's place."

Lambo scowled. "Since when were _you_ searching?"

Mukuro glared at him dangerously.

"I'm still going back to the old man to ask for more information," Gokudera said grudgingly. He should have been the one to figure out that she'd have to go back home at some point. So off they went, back to the shop. It was near dark now, which convinced Gokudera that she must have returned home for the night.

The three of them walked up to the front door and he pounded on it loudly. It clanged five times louder and produced an echo. The people getting ready for bed were most likely pissed off at them for making so much noise.

Lambo was already nodding off on the spot. Gokudera smacked his head to keep him awake.

"Who's there?" The old man's voice growled.

"Us," Gokudera replied stiffly.

"You again," he said and opened the door. The old man was in his night clothes with a cane by his side.

"Can we stay for the night? The hotel we've been staying at is very dirty," Lambo asked out of the blue.

"What! Oi, you Stupid Cow! That wasn't what we're here to ask!" Gokudera shouted at Lambo.

"But aren't you tired of running around the whole day?" Lambo whined. "That hotel has fleas! I can't stay there another night even if you force me to!" The old man sighed.

"Just come in. I can't stand your constant bickering at my doorstep. You better go get to bed right now and not disturb me at all." They stared at him, surprised by his act of kindness.

"Thank you a million times over!" Lambo cried. Gokudera's vein popped nad he kicked the boy inside. Lambo whimpered.

"Must…stay…calm…WHAAA!" He began to bawl like a baby. Gokudera plugged his ears and glared at Lambo.

"SHUT UP!"

"Old man, why are you being so kind?" Mukuro asked curiously. The last time he saw this man, he was grouchy and rude to all of them.

"You were all bothering me in the middle of my work," he said. "Anyone would be mad at you. No respect at all."

"Where's your granddaughter?" Gokduera demanded.

"She hasn't come back yet."

"Aren't you worried?" Lambo sniffed and wiped his nose.

"Hoho! She can take care of herself! That girl, she has nothing to be afraid of!"

Mukuro could tell that something in his eyes showed that he didn't fully believe that. Being the physiological genius he is, he concluded that there were people after his granddaughter. Mukuro shrugged his shoulders. It wasn't his problem. But then again…Nagi alone with that irritating skylark…that irked him.

That girl better have kept the vial safe. The old man cleared his throat and told them to follow him into the living place of the workshop.

They went down a corridor away from the inventions lingering here and there. They passed a forge fire, tanks, rooms filled with papers, and finally, at the end of the hall, a door, which opened up into a small, warm room. In the dim candle the old man had with him, they could tell that it was the kitchen. Their stomachs grumbled to all of their dismay. The old man paused and looked back at them. He sighed heavily.

"Since when did I become a servant of my own house?"

Finally, an hour later, they were settled in. He only had two spare rooms, and Mukuro demanded that he had his own. Lambo had no objections and took over the other one.

Gokudera stood in the middle of the hallway between the two closed doors. There was no way he was going to give Mukuro the chance to strike him. He opened the left one, which had a snoozing Lambo in the bed by the far wall. Gokudera closed the door and stared at it suspiciously. The lock seemed to be working but he couldn't leave it up to that to determine his safety with a skilled illusionist sleeping in the room right across from his. So, he set traps with his dynamites to explode if anyone forced the door to open.

The next morning, he dismantled the bombs and pushed Lambo off his bed.

"Wake up!"

"You didn't need to push me off, Bakadera!" Lambo screamed and took out a pink grenade.

"You wouldn't have woken up otherwise!"

They got into a heated argument and called each other insults. Explosions sounded through the streets as the window shattered and the two occupants of the room flew back in either direction. Mukuro leaned against the doorway with a smirk on his face. The old man also watched them disapprovingly.

"You're paying for that."

Back on the streets after being shoved out the door by the old man, they wandered around and bought their breakfast from a bakery. The three of them walked side by side which was a rare sight to see.

Lambo's eyes, which caught on anything sparkly, instantly zoomed in on the vial. He ran to it.

"Oh, no _way,_" He and Gokudera said in union.

"She must have dropped it in her mad rush to escape from me," Gokudera grinned and picked it up. He tossed it into the air and pocketed their prize. About to walk away, he frowned and examined the scene.

"What's up?" Lambo asked. Mukuro also scans the area in the morning light.

"There was a fight here," Gokudera said.

"Not enough to be a real fight," Mukuro corrected. Gokudera scowled and knelt by a tipped can of white paint. He noted the large dent in it. He looked up and saw white paint on the wall. He stood and scraped it off. It was still slightly wet. He sniffed the paint.

"This paint takes forever to dry," he told his audience. Mukuro was sniffing the air. "So whatever happened here was some time yesterday late afternoon."

"You smell that?" Mukuro asked them. They sniffed. Lambo shrugged. He didn't smell anything out of the ordinary. Gokudera's sharp nose took in the scents of tobacco and another thing: a sweet-smelling scent that he had investigated thoroughly as a childhood project.

"Chloroform," he said. "Someone used chloroform." Although this wasn't announced to the public until much later, Gokudera was sure that people were aware of chloroform long before. To think that he would face it in this time period. He snorted. Looking down, he found a trail of white paint. He growled and rolled his eyes.

"_Great._ Come on," he said.

"What? Where are we going? We can't just leave!" Lambo said. He wasn't sure what this chloro-thinngy was, but apparently, something happened to Melissa and Gokudera was leaving. "We have to save her!"

"What do you _think_ we're going to do, you STUPID IDIOT!" Gokudera snarled. "Do I have to spell it out for you? God. That brat just _has_ to waste our time by getting captured by some unknown cult." He began to follow the trail. Lambo smiles sheepishly when he realises that Gokudera was going to help rescue her.

"Don't think I'm doing this out of good will," Gokudera growled grudgingly. "It's only that Juudaime would do the same if he were here."

_Young__ Vongola__ has__ changed __him__ a __lot,_ Lambo reflected. With Gokudera hanging around Tsuna so much, with him being so loyal to Tsuna, there was no doubt that the Vongola's ways has caught up to the delinquent who would never usually save someone unknown to him.

* * *

><p><strong><em>-LLM<em>**

**_Edited 2015-03-16th_**


	9. Oh, dear

**Chapter Nine**

Chrome shifted uncomfortably as she rode. Her companion, Hibari Kyoya, wasn't helping with easing her mind. He was on the roof napping, as always, while she was doing the riding. They stayed in this position for over an hour and Chrome was beginning to nod off with the reins slackening in her hands.

"Herbivore." She jolted away and turned to her right. She looked up and squinted in the sunlight, up to a prefect who was standing beside her with the reins in _his_ hands. She looked at her own, then back at him. The carriage had stopped. Why? She turned to the horses. Then she looked at where they were and gasped. They were right in front of a large pit filled with mud. She wondered if she could call it a swamp…until she remembered who she was sitting beside.

"What happened?"

"Hn. You were driving me into a ditch."

Her eyes widened. "I'm terribly sorry!" she said and tried to stand up, but wobbled.

Hibari's eyes narrowed. "I'll bite you to death if it happens again," he threatened.

"Hai!"

"Get off."

"What?" Chrome whispered, horrified. Not this again. Was she being abandoned? No…It can't be…no way.

"An undisciplined herbivore like you will fall right back asleep if I give you permission to continue leading the horses," Hibari stated, reading the worry etched in her face. Why did this herbivore make him explain himself so much? It was beginning to tick him off. He pointed to the carriage. Chrome, being the bright girl she was, jumped off and scurried into the safe haven, away from the prefect. Once she was inside, Hibari commanded the horses to continue on their way. Chrome let out a sigh of relief. She wondered where they were headed to because Mukuro didn't tell her about it before, and Hibari was the one with the map marking all the places they were going to.

She closed her eye, hugging the green bag she always had with her. She thought of their current situation as the carriage moved over the uneven surface. How the hell was she supposed to help Hibari do anything at all? He liked to work alone and he didn't like pineapples in the least. She frowned unconsciously and continued to debate over this matter as she fell asleep.

When they stopped for the night, Chrome argued with herself as to whether she should go up to Hibari to ask where they were going next and what they were to find. Then she'd have to wait for his answer without being bitten to death before hand. She took a small step towards the figure lying on the grassy terrain and stopped. She took a step back and turned her head to the side so it was facing the setting sun. She bit the inside of her cheek gently and looked back at Hibari. She took another step—and another back. Shifting her weight from foot to foot, she thought, _H-How __am __I__ supposed __to __ask __him? __What __should __I __do?_

"Herbivore. Stop pacing around or else I will bite you to death."

"Do you know…where…we're going?"

Hibari stared at her calmly. After waiting for thirty seconds, Chrome backed away slowly.

"Never mind. Forget I asked…" She began to walk away but Hibari spoke.

"Herbivore—catch." She spun around and nearly dropped her bag as a rolled up paper flew towards her. She tossed it from one hand to the other as she tried to get a hold of it. She let out a sigh when she calmed down and held it steadily. She placed her bag to the side and spread the paper on the ground. She took one look at it and cocked her head in surprise.

"I thought our map was torn apart?" Yes, Gokudera had supplied them all with maps, but none of them marked the locations of the Gatherers.

"The carnivore gave me another one yesterday with a pigeon." Chrome's mouth stayed partly open as she nodded slowly. Carnivore could only mean a few selected people—no, scratch that…it can only mean Reborn. But how did the pigeon manage to fly all the way to where they were? And how did Reborn know that they needed a new map, let alone where they were?

She looked back to the map and examined it with a careful eye even though she only knew half of what she was doing. After all, she basically dropped out of school after Mukuro took her in. Even though she wore a school uniform, she didn't go to school. It was only after Reborn understood that she was staying for good, that he made sure to teach her all the fundamentals of things taught in school, as well as extra-curricular things—or also known as mafia and illusion related things. She understood a bit about maps from her classes and was busy trying to use the legend to calculate how long it would take to get to their destination: Prizzi. Her eyes boggled at the distance. But then again…when she measured it, it was only about what… She sighed. Should she stay on the safe side and say that it will take them another two days to reach there?

"How are we going to not get lost?" she murmured to herself, not expecting Hibari to answer.

"We're going downstream of the river," Hibari grumbled. "Now don't disturb my sleep."

She nodded quickly and wrapped the map up. "Good night, Cloud man…"

"Stop referring me to that herbivore-ic group you herbivores are in," Hibari growled.

"Hibari-san, then?" she wondered.

"Whatever." Chrome blinked and shrugged inwardly. She leaned against a tree and brought her legs up. An illusionary blanket appeared when she felt that it was getting too chilly. Then she decided, heck. Everyone needs some warmth on this cold night. She casted a thin illusion, which she hoped would not wake the prefect, and sighed as the circumference she drew around the clearing kept them warm, while air circulation was still available; it would do her no good if he bit her to death because she nearly killed them.

* * *

><p><strong>The next morning…<strong>

Chrome woke up first. She blinked up to the blue sky…and blinked again. Then she bolted upright, gasping. As fast as it hit her, the girl remembered where she was and calmed down. Chrome shivered, though it wasn't cold. _I__'__d__ better __cancel__ the__ illusion __before __Clou__—__Hibari-san __wakes __up. __We__ all __know__ how__ much__ he __hates __them. __I __don__'__t __understand __why __though. __Illusions__ are__ useful __sometimes__…_

Now she was faced with another problem…how were they supposed to continue on their journey with Hibari still asleep under the tree? She had used up all her courage last night when she asked him a single question. She wasn't about to risk her life to wake him up from his peaceful sleep. Then she remembered the food that Lambo stashed in the back of the carriage. She went to it and rummaged around. She found bread, cheese, vegetables, fruit, water, cakes, pie; nothing that needed cooking before eating. And why did she have the feeling that Hibari wouldn't want to eat this…herbivore food…? And she shivered at the thought of killing an innocent animal for meat. Well, there goes her plan of waking him up to the scent of food. Good bye, plan!

Her problem was answered for her by the morning birds, including Hibird. Chrome rushed around, trying to quiet them down although there was no way that would be possible. The songs blended together and made a beautiful tune. She stood, mesmerised. Hibird began to chirp another tune; it was the Nami-Chuu anthem. Suddenly, the song birds mixed that into their morning choir and the song became much more than the regular one. Echoes sounded as the birds timed the notes and they sung in absolute harmony.

"Amazing…" Chrome whispered in awe. She heard shuffling behind her and saw that Hibari had sat up with a startled and puzzled look on his face. The expressions were quickly masked behind a blank face but Chrome smiled when she caught it. Hibari saw her doing it.

"What are you staring at, Herbivore?" He said. Chrome stiffened and her lips twitched.

"N-Nothing!"

"Hn." Hibari turned to listen to his favourite song sung to him by small herbivores. When it ended, Hibird flew back to Hibari's outstretched hand. Hibari let out one last yawn before heading towards the carriage. He jumped to the top of it and lay down.

"Herbivore, drive," he commanded. Chrome didn't dare keep him waiting so she ran to the horses as quick as she can. She made sure the horses were secured to the carriage and patted them. They still didn't have names yet…oh well. That can be something to think about during the ride. After making sure that Hibari was settled, she hit the reins to the horses gently and they moved forwards.

Without Gokudera or Lambo with them, the ride was quite peaceful. She _actually_ heard the horses' hooves clopping on the ground since the beginning of this crazy adventure.

* * *

><p><strong>Prizzi Entrance<strong>

The men on duty that night were laughing and talking about their families when they heard neighs coming from horses not far away. They cocked their heads to listen again. They peered into the dark road. In the dim moonlight, the two men saw a carriage pulled by two horses, guided by a dark figure.

"_Halt!__"_ The man at the gate barked out when they approached. It was near midnight when they arrived. Hibari, who was at the front, narrowed his eyes at the man. In the darkness, neither could make out the other's face, masking most emotions shown. Hibari stopped the horses nonetheless and waited for the man to walk up to them. He held a lamp.

"What?" Hibari said impatiently. Two days on the road has brought his patience to a dead end. "If you stop me I will bite you to death." The man shivered and steadied himself.

"We don't allow outsiders to enter the town after dark! Come back in the morning!" Hibari glared again.

"Hibari-san? Who's there?" a muffled voice called from within. Chrome had woken up to them speaking in Italian, so she thought that it was best if she spoke in the language as she asked about the problem. The man's ears perked at the voice of the woman who was in the carriage.

Hibari didn't bother replying, which made Chrome even more curious and stick her small purple head out the window shyly.

"Who are you?" Chrome asked nervously. The man tipped his hat politely in the presence of a young lady. Normal folk don't go around in carriages with their personal chauffeur…oh he was in for it if he said that out loud.

"I am one of the men on guard duty tonight, miss. We cannot allow anyone to enter the town after nightfall." Chrome stared back blankly although the man couldn't see. He took the silence as anger from the young lady, like most nobles or rich people would act when told that their request couldn't be followed.

"Let me through or be bitten to death," Hibari said. He dropped the reins and stood on the seat with his tonfa out. The man back at the gates sat up and frowned at the scene. What was taking his partner so long to tell them to leave? He walked up to them as well. Then a strong gust of wind blew the torch out. He froze in the darkness and then heard a cry of pain. He ran to the carriage. The man talking to Hibari was down on the ground. He sat up, wincing as he touched his bleeding head. Hibari jumped down from the seat slowly, if that was even possible, and scared the two men.

His jacket flowed like a cape as he landed on the ground silently. Then it landed back on his shoulders. Hiabri's glare was enough to make them think that they were facing a vampire. The two backed away. Hibari advanced. Chrome fumbled with the door lock and almost growled when it got stuck. She was finally released and nearly fell over her own feet in her haste to stop Hibari from killing the two.

"Hibari-san!" Chrome cries. "Please don't h-hurt them!" She couldn't believe that she was actually talking to the prefect. Neither could Hibari himself, who was taking in the fact that the quiet, shy herbivore was trying to convince him not to do something, like that other herbivore, Tsunayoshi. The two men were confused with the language they spoke and was frightened that the woman was going to order that _man_ (it was hard to consider Hibari a boy when he could scare a man to death) to harm them in any way. But the one who spoke to them first had his doubts. The girl seemed to be trying urgently to convince the man _not_ to do something. Oh, how he hoped that he would listen to her and spare them.

"And why should I listen to you, Herbivore?" Hibari asked.

"Because…" Chrome stuttered. She tried to come up with a good reason, but was unable to. The next time she looked up, the two men were already unconscious on the ground with possibly broken bones, black eyes, and bruises all over the rest of their body. The crickets also stopped, as if sensing a deadly predator nearby. Hibari tossed the men out of the way and pulled the heavy, smooth gates open easily as if it weighed no more than a feather. Chrome went back into the carriage, not knowing what else to do. Hibari gave the horses a piercing whistle and they began to trot towards their master. Once they were through, the gates shut easily. He left them unlocked and the men outside in the cold weather.

He looked around with observant eyes and stopped at a small inn, where the horses can rest. He began to walk, snatching up one of the horses' reins as he did so. It followed obediently. The town was quiet and no lights were on except for the ones in the taverns which were open overnight. Hibari avoided the crowd and noise and made a beeline for the stables. His foot kicked the door open. He stood in the doorway as if he owned the place. Chrome got off and hesitantly untied the horses from their restraints. Hibari said nothing.

"Wha? Who are you?" A young boy asked. He was looking at them through a small window in the wall. Beyond was a dark, cozy room.

"Do you look after the horses?" Hibari asked instead. The boy nodded curiously, unafraid of the prefect. "Take care of these two."

"But it's the middle of the night," the boy protested. Hibari's tonfas appeared and the youth clamped his mouth shut. "I'll be right there!" The window closed and they heard quiet footsteps. The boy was still in his nightshirt when he met them.

Chrome saw that there were three other horses in there as well. All three were sleeping for the night. There were three more empty stalls; two were quickly filled with their horses and the boy brushed them properly while yawning. Hibari stayed to watch, making Chrome do the same as well.

After he was done, the boy saluted Hibari. He was practically asleep on his feet, since he just wasted at least half an hour of sleep. Or more.

Hibari walked off and Chrome paused. She gave the boy two copper coins as thanks. His eyes widened. Two copper coins just for settling the horses in?

"Don't you two want to stay inside for the night?" He asked as he noticed they were leaving.

"I'd rather sleep in the open than with a house full of herbivores."

The boy's eyebrows rose at the choice of words.

"I'll stay inside," Chrome said. As long as she didn't lag behind, Hibari wouldn't abandon her…at least, she was pretty sure. The boy nodded and motioned for Chrome to follow him inside. They went through a back door, since the front was locked, he explained to her. He noticed that she was just a few years older and found her easier to talk to than most adults and that boy she was with.

"My ma owns this place," he explained, "so she won't mind if I open up a room for you and cashing in the coin—as long as we're quiet about it." Chrome nodded thoughtfully.

The innkeeper's son gave her a room on the second floor, facing the back of the inn. Outside the window she could see the woods which surrounded the town. If she squinted, she could see a blurry shape leaning on a tree branch and the trunk, with a jacket over his body. The boy left her and she thanked him one last time. The door closed and she locked it shut. Then she rummaged through her bag for anything to wear for the night. Settling with a large t-shirt and shorts, she wrapped herself in the soft blanket and took off her eye patch to replace it with a white one. Tomorrow, they would search the entire town for their missing object. The substance that Talbot requested from this area was not an ingredient of some sort. It was actually a pair of tongs made out of the rarest metal. Talbot said that the person they were going to would understand what they want if they told the Gatherer that they needed _the_ Tongs. And then, she fell asleep.

(*)

When Chrome was fully asleep, her mind was blank. But then a voice came to her.

_Mukuro-sama?_ She asked subconsciously.

_Nagi, __it__ will __take __us __another__ day __before__ we __are __finished __here.__ How __is __everything__ with __you?_ He replied faintly.

_We just arrived at Prizzi and we're going to look for the Tongs tomorrow morning._

_Kufufufu. That's good. That way, the two of you can make your way back to Villafrati to pick us up; and from there, we will go back to Termini, where Tsunayoshi is. H__as that skylark been bothering you? There is no need to fear him._

Chrome quickly replied, _No,__ I__'__m__ fine, __Mukuro-sama!__ He __didn__'__t __do __anything__…_ She could feel Mukuro's restlessness for leaving something which belonged to him with Hibari.

_Very__ well,_ Mukuro resigned. _Good__ luck__ on __your __search._ The communication disconnected and Chrome was once again enveloped with sleep.

(*)

The next morning, Chrome woke up early and blinked at a ceiling instead of the sky. Then she sat up and stretched before changing into her usual green uniform. She looked at her reflection in a small mirror. Satisfied that everything was in place, she headed downstairs. She was met with a lady cleaning up the tables where the guests would eat. The woman had long blond hair and a shorter-than-average-height. Her eyes were blue. She looked up at the young girl and smiled. Her eyebrows twitched at the sight of the skirt's length, which was improper for a girl.

"Hello. You must be the girl my boy told me about this morning. Welcome. I hope you found the night peaceful?"

Chrome smiled back shyly. "Y-Yes…thank you for taking care of me," she bowed.

"Oh, no need to do that! Well. Are you hungry?" As if on cue, Chrome's stomach growled a yes. Chrome blushes and takes the seat the inn keeper pointed to.

"I have meat pastries from yesterday. They're still good to eat and will be steaming hot once they're ready. How does that sound?" Chrome nodded. Right now, anything other than plain loafs of bread sounded like heaven.

It only took a few minutes for her food to be served. Chrome took a bite and found it as wonderful as it smelled. There was some loud laughing going on outside beyond the door. Chrome looks up curiously. The door opens wide and three gangly teenagers walk in. Chrome continued to eat and tried to make herself has invisible as possible. The owner scowled at the boys.

"Here, you lot! Be quiet! Some of the guests are still asleep!" She stood there with her hands on her hips. They boys quieted down a bit.

"Hah! Sorry about that!" The one who was the leader said. He gave her a cocky grin which ticked her off. Then the second boy noticed Chrome and gave her a look over.

"Look at this girlie! Awake at such an hour, huh?" Chrome looked up and her single eye showed fear. The third one stepped up as well.

"What happened to your other eye?" He asked impolitely. Chrome covers her right eye with a quavering hand. She stands up and walks to the mistress.

"Th-Thank you for your hospitality. Here's some money. Thank you!" She thrusts a few coins into her hand and runs for the door. The leader snatches her right arm and she lets out a small yelp. She could smell alcohol as he leaned in.

"Hey there, what's the rush? I can see that you aren't from around here," he said. Chrome looks at him and notices that he has a handsome face. He must be used to girls swooning all over him that was for sure.

Chrome suddenly remembered something Haru told her before.

_"If any pervert tries to grab you, don't be afraid to fight back!"_ Haru said with total confidence. _"Haru can guarantee that a strong girl like you can beat them into a pulp, if a girl like Haru can do it!"_

Chrome took in a deep breath. "Please let go of me," she saidslowly, trying to so show fear through her voice. The grip didn't loosen,

"She said to let go, boy! Scat, before I take my broom out and toss you out myself!" The inn keeper said.

The young illusionist was beginning to worry when the other two began to circle her. She lashed out and kicked the leader in the groin and hit the other two with her bag which held her collapsed trident.

_CLAANNGGGG!_

The three of them were down and she was off.

"It took you long enough, herbivore," Hibari said dangerously when Chrome stopped to catch her breath beside him. Hibari was watching the scene from outside the inn, waiting to see what would happen.

Chrome was quite angry that Hibari didn't at least give her a hand, but her reasonable nature stopped her from doing anything stupid, like yelling at the prefect. He started to walk so she followed as if the events that morning didn't happen at all. Hibari look out the map once and put it away after he found where they were headed to—which only took about five seconds. Down the street they went, turning this way and that. Chrome wondered a few times whether they were lost, but Hibari appeared to know where he was going. She stared around her in wonder as they passed the busy market square, but was distracted from the pace they were going at. Hibari was practically speed walking to the extreme.

"Hibari-san…? Why didn't you take a quieter route?" Chrome dared to ask. She was still testing around to see what she can do.

"…There was no other route." That ended the conversation.

They stopped in front of a dark house that was away from the noise and crowd. Hibari kicked at the door.

"What?" An annoyed, gruff voice said from within.

"Open the door," Hibari growled. The door opened and they looked up at a very large man. Chrome muffled her scream by slapping her hands over her mouth. Hibari's tonfa were out and he automatically went into a fighting stance. Chrome stepped back and had her bag against her chest. Her weapon could be out in a second, if need be.

"What's with you, boy?" The man asked in a low voice as if he wasn't used to speaking.

"Wearing a mask is against school rules," Hibari stated. "I will bite you to death."

The man was silent behind the red, blood coloured mask which his his face entirely.

"What?" Was his reply. Hibari whacked a tonfa at his face in an attempt to shatter the annoying mask, but the man was quicker. Hibari raised an eyebrow but nothing more. So what if this herbivore could evade his hits? That meant nothing.

"Give me the Tongs." He hit again, but this time the man said nothing in return.

Hibari growled. He was done talking. If he won't talk, then he'll just take this as an opportunity to enjoy a good fight.

"Hibari-san! Behind you!" Hibari instinctively jumped away at the girl's words, even though he didn't sense anything. In his place was…nothing. He turned to Chrome, planning on giving her a piece of his mind.

"There's an illusion of a net…" she said nervously. Hibari looked at the ground again and saw indigo coloured mist expanding and covering two metres of the ground. When it dispersed, there was a net. The man turned to the young girl who appeared to be an illusionist although he would have never thought that at first.

Hibari wanted to continue the fight, but the other man showed no signs of sharing his thoughts.

"Why do you need the Tongs?" The question was directed at Chrome. She stuttered nervously and looked at Hibari for help, which she knew would probably never happen. So, she gathered her wits and replied to the scary looking man.

"Talbot sent us to get it. He said that you might want us to do something first?"

For a minute, no one moved. Then the man turned around and walked into the house. He left the door open which probably meant that they were supposed to follow. Hibari and Chrome glanced at each other. He grunted and went in first with her following after, closing the door quietly.

The hallway was dark and simple. They past two rooms as Hibari led them after the strange man, looking for a chance to fight with him again. He could feel that the man was holding back, and he didn't like that one bit. It was as if the herbivore was saying that he wasn't strong enough to be taken seriously. He'll show that man differently.

The man stopped by a doorway and turned around.

"Good. You closed the door," he said. Chrome wanted to ask why that was "good", but decided against it. "Now, we can talk privately." Chrome was surprised that her unvoiced question was answered and for a moment, wondered if he could read their minds. Then she shook her head at her foolishness. He probably just saw my question through my eyes, Chrome thought.

"Go to the hole in the wall and find me the green staff." Hibari narrowed his eyes at the request.

"I don't listen to herbivores like you. I won't go on such a petty errand for anyone," Hibari said.

"This is no petty errand, boy. It is dangerous and deadly. Many have not been able to fulfill my request because of the horrors they face in there. You will have to fight for your lives to go through."

_Then__ why __send __us?_ Chrome's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The man saw right through her once again.

_You__'__re__ all __so __annoying__…__you__'__ll __never__ get __through __there. __And__ if __you __can__'__t, __you __won__'__t__ be__ able__ to __come __back __and __bother__ me __again,_ the man thought grouchily. _They__ can __get __trapped__ in __the__ hypnotizing __spell __for __all __I __care._

At the mention of dangerous, and fight, Hibari's eyes showed interest. "Where is it?"

The man showed them the spot on the map of the town. It was at the edge, near the outskirts of town. Hibari put the map into the folds of his jacket and turned around. Chrome stepped back so she won't bump into him. Hibari glared at her for a moment before walking off. Chrome blinked innocently and followed.

Did she even know what she was getting into? Following the deadly prefect into a deadly place that no one has ever returned alive from? She shrugged. That sounded like every other place she's been to since her thirteenth birthday.

They found the exit and left the gloomy house behind. The little children were running about, laughing happily as they carried their school bags. Most of them were boys, and a few girls. All were smiling and talking to each other happily. This annoyed Hibari to no extent and he wanted to bite those herbivores to death. But they were so small he wasn't sure whether he should even bother.

They _did_ give the two curious stares, knowing that they weren't around from here, but did nothing more. They passed the neighbourhood and wandered around until they reached their destination, which took them about an hour of walking. Their horses were still in the stables of the inn Chrome stayed over in last night, since he was too lazy to get them ready, and the streets weren't exactly made for carriages and horses. They were only wide enough for stalls on both sides and a lot of space for people to walk on, nothing more.

The hole in the wall was really, simply, nothing more, nothing less, than a hole in the wall. The wall itself wasn't important; the thing that caught their attention was the deep, black hole. It seemed to run on forever, never ending.

"Are we really going in there?"Chrome asked.

"Hn," Hibari replied and stepped forward. His tonfa were out and he thrust them inside to see what happened. The temperature of his hands didn't change. Nothing in the air rippled to suggest something waiting for them in the shadows. He stepped in without hesitation. Hibird settled on his master's head. He peeped. Chrome stepped in cautiously with her trident out, guiding her steps and for comfort. She looked around, frightened, but followed Hibari quickly so she wouldn't be left behind. The most surprising thing happened when they stepped through.

Instead of the darkness they were prepared for, they were faced with a bright and beautiful forest. Chrome gasped in amazement.

"How can this be, without it being an illusion?" she asked. Hibari glared at her again. She ignored it, since she was used to the glares by now.

"How can you be sure it's not an illusion?" Hibari himself couldn't sense anything that seemed off, but he knew that he wasn't an expert at illusions, but he was accustomed to them, so he would have known if anything was off. The only reason why he let the herbivore cast that barrier of warmth was because he was too tired to bite her to death.

Chrome nodded her head slowly. "I would have sensed if this was an illusion…" She brushed the trees. Hibird left Hibari's head and explored on his own, singing the Nami-chuu anthem. The prefect's tonfa went to his sides but refused to put them away. Something felt off here…

"I wish we could stay here together," Chrome said quietly, awed by the beauty of a red bird. It flew into the sky and joined its family before heading southwards. Hibari snapped out of his musing and marched up to the herbivore. He used a tonfa to hit her head hard enough to bruise.

"Ite!" Chrome cried.

"Snap out of it, herbivore!" Hibari growled.

"What?"

Hibari glowered at her and she became even smaller.

"I'll bite you to death if you don't follow me."

"H-HAI!"

Hibari stalked off with Chrome hastily following behind, all thoughts of staying in paradise erased from her mind, overcome by the fear for the prefect.

As they left the clearing, they failed to notice the human skull hidden by the shadows, sitting by a tree…

* * *

><p>Their surroundings didn't change as they walked from sun high to sun set. They also haven't encountered anything yet.<p>

"How are we going to get back?" Chrome asked nervously. "We walked so far from the hole…"

Hibari chose not to answer her question and continued onward. Two hours later, Chrome needed to rely on her trident to keep her standing upright. Her eye was drooping, forcing to shut completely if she didn't continue to move and pinch her cheek. Hibari stopped suddenly and she bumped into his back.

She was so tired she didn't know the grave mistake she made and could only muster up a short apology.

Hibari yawned, opening his mouth wide. He was getting tired as well. He turned around to tell the herbivore that they were going to rest for a bit and paused when he saw a zombie-like herbivore standing behind him. He hit it on its head and told this herbivore that they were going to nap.

Chrome couldn't find a single sentence that seemed as wonderful as the one Hibari just said. She quickly agreed and settled in for the night. Hibari jumped into a tree and put his tonfa away. He closed his eyes and Hibird nestled in his hair. Both of them slept like the dead. That is…until a few hours later. It was then when Hibari was suddenly wide awake for no reason. He stayed still and continued to keep his eyelids closed.

_Which __herbivore __dares__ disrupt __my __rest?_ Hibari thought. He listened carefully and heard nothing. Most people might have went back to sleep, but he didn't. _He_ continued to listen for whatever woke him up. There. It came again. He smirked inwardly at the foolish herbivore who thought that it can sneak up on _the_ Hibari Kyoya, leader of Nami-chuu's Disciplinary Committee and the rest of Namimori. When the footsteps were close enough, Hibari sprung up and attacked the intruder.

"Aaah! Please! Don't hurt me!" A squealing voice screamed. Hibari saw that is was a short and fat old man who had a blue beard with purple hair. Hibari's eyes narrowed at the odd sight.

"Who are you?" Chrome's voice asked. If Hibari was surprised to know that the illusionist was also awake, he didn't show it. This just showed that this herbivore—in plain words—_sucked_ at sneaking up on people.

"E-Eh? The girl's awake as well?" The man asked in jolly shock. Chrome frowned as she had a bad feeling about this man.

"I will bite you to death," Hibari growled and lunged at him.

"Haho!" he cried and ducked crazily. Hibari swung again and the mysterious man jumped back to avoid a blow that could have given him a concussion to be proud of. Chrome stared. No normal person should be able to dodge. Then her mouth turned into an O as she watched harder. Then she yelled, "Hibari-san! That's an illusion—a real illusion!" Hibari frowned and stopped attacking. The so called illusion did not disappear. Instead, it began to taunt Hibari into fighting again. Chrome decided that she should dispel it before the prefect got too angry. They all saw what happened _last_ time. She hit the bottom of her trident to the ground and made the illusion disperse. It turned into a puff of smoke which was blown away by the wind. Hibari looked around with a careful eye to find the real one and so did Chrome. Mukurou suddenly came out and landed on Chrome's shoulder.

"M-Mukurou! You came out?" Chrome exclaimed softly. He hooted. Hibari's aura became dark at the mention of _Mukuro._ Mukurou jumped into the air and glided above their heads. He hooted again and flew towards one area and turned around, as if waiting for them to follow.

"What is that owl doing?" Hibari growled.

"He wants us to follow him." She ran after it without waiting for Hibari. He stood there for a moment before going after the girl. They ran through the forest and onto flagstones. A castle was up ahead and there stood the annoying herbivore at the steps.

"Hooohooo! Come in if you dare!" he sang and disappeared into the house. Without thinking, Hibari dashed in. His tonfa were out, ready to strike.

"Where are you, herbivore?" Hibari snarled. Chrome skidded to a halt and looked around cautiously. The man's laugh echoed around the entire castle.

"Look for that herbivore," Hibari ordered Chrome. She nodded hesitantly and ran the opposite direction from Hibari after a moment of worry.

* * *

><p><strong>Half an hour later…<strong>

Hibari slammed a tonfa into the solid wall, giving a nice, big crack. He couldn't find the man. Instead, a plain door caught his eye. He approached it and kicked it down.

He was _very_ disappointed. There was nothing dangerous in this place…and here in front of him, was the green staff Torikabuto requested. He heard running feet and knew that it was the girl.

_He __found__ the __room!_ Chrome thought. _But__ where__'__s__ the__ blue __man?_

Hibari and Chrome walked into the room. They stared at the green staff. It was simple with an elegant design on it.

_**BOOM!**_

The castle shuddered violently and they almost lost their footing. The two thought of the staff, although Hibari would never admit that he was worried about it.

Both of them grabbed the staff at the same time. In a blink of an eye, the rumbling stopped and the two were handcuffed together by the staff.

The maniacal laughter came again. "Seeing how the two of you react with each other, there is no way you can make it out of here alive! Haha! Let's see you starve to death here!"

"Herbivore…I will bite you to death when I find you," Hibari growled under his breath and looked at the handcuffs. Try as they may, their restraints did not loosen. Hibari glared at it harder as if his look can melt the metal. Chrome shifted uncomfortably with the thought of being stuck with an angry prefect. She just hoped that she can stay alive when Hibari gets angry.

"What are we going to do now?" Chrome asked quietly. Hibari tugged and began walking Chrome almost tripped and ran to match his long strides. When he didn't reply, she thought that it would be better if she didn't annoy him by pestering him with questions.

* * *

><p>Hibari kicked down yet another door, this time it was to the dining hall of the castle. He stormed in with Chrome right behind. The short and fat man choked on his dinner at the sight of them.<p>

"Wow! Y-You—The two of you came all the way here?"

"Tell me how to get this off or else I will bite you to death."

"There's no way I'll tell you that!" The man laughed nervously. Now that they were here, he wasn't as confident. "Goodbye! Enjoy your death!" He turned around and tried to run through the rear doors. Chrome and Hibari's figures appeared right in front of them. He jumped back and turned back around. There they were; they haven't even moved! Then they began to multiply and surround him.

"I-Illusions!" he screamed and covered his head. "They're just illusions!" He waved his hands wildly and tried to make them go away. He had _some_ skill in illusions, but not enough. The previous illusion they met in the forest was made by the Mist Gatherer, not him.

"Tell me," a voice echoed. "Tell me, or you will be bitten to death…death…death…"

"Aah! Okay! Okay! I'll tell, I'll tell! Just take these damn illusions away!" He yelled. The illusions of the two Guardians only became closer. "D-Don't come nearer! No! Noooo!"

* * *

><p><strong>Fifteen minutes earlier…<strong>

"Hibari-san…don't you think that we should ask that blue man how to take them off first?" Chrome asked after a few hours of tense silence. Hibari stopped. Chrome wondered why she was so talkative. Maybe she just wasn't used to long moments of silence anymore, since she's always surrounded by Ken, Chikusa, and her boss' family. Everyone knows that most of them can't shut up unless they were sleeping.

Hibari came up with a plan, which he hated because it included illusions.

* * *

><p>"I'll spill, I'll spill!" The man begged. "Just don't sick those dogs on me!" Hibari stared blankly at Chrome.<p>

"Dogs…?"

"The illusion is their number one fear," Chrome explained softly. "Apparently, blue man's biggest fear is the golden retriever."

"Hn." He turned back to the man and pounded his head.

"YEAAAOOOW!"

"Herbivore. Don't make me repeat myself."

"Y-You have to go to M-Master Luko if you want those unlocked!" He cried and shielded his head. "H-He's the one who sent you here!"

"…"

He slowly raised his head to see why everything had gone silent. The only thing he saw was something silver coming at his face before blacking out.

Hibari unceremoniously kicked down the front door belonging to "Master Luko" and went in. Onlookers nearby who noticed the bang of the door falling had their jaws hanging at the sight of a mere child kicking a door off its hinges.

"Herbivore! I'll bite you to death!" He crashed through furniture and walls alike as he searched for the man with the mask. Poor Chrome had to follow the ranging prefect. She thought that her arm would be pulled out of the socket when Hibari swung his arm, pulling her arm and the staff as well.

_"Hibari! Hibari!"_ Hibird chirped. Hibari paused and glared at his bird. _"Herbivore! Herbivore!"_

_"Where?"_ His master demanded. Hibird flew off singing the happiest song ever created. Hibari suddenly sprinted after the bird. Chrome flailed for a moment as her feet were dragged, and then she too, ran.

They passed the kitchen and what seemed to be a laboratory. Hibird flew into the next room and flew around. They looked in all corners of the room when they arrived and saw no one.

"Herbivore, I know you're here. Only weaklings hide from their opponents." Purple mist surrounded one corner of the room and Luko came into being.

"_Why__ and __how__ did __you __come __back? __Do __you__ have __the __staff?__"_ He asked as he floated in mid air.

That was a stupid question. They were handcuffed to the damn staff.

"You underestimate me, herbivore," Hibari scowled. "Get this off me so I can bite you to death properly."

"_I __will __not__ fight __you.__ The __Tongs __are __in __the __laboratory, __in __the __green__ cupboard. __In __that __cupboard __is __the __key __to __open__ the __cuffs. __Get __out.__"_ A magical force pushed them back into the hall, closing the doors. An invisible hand continued to move them against their own will. The magic was so strong, neither of them could do anything. It thrusts them into the lab they passed by and shut the door. Hibari glared at the door. Chrome found the green box almost immediately. Everything else in the room was either indigo coloured or purple.

"H-Hibari-san," she said, afraid of breaking the silence. Hibari swirled around and grabbed at the cupboard's knob. It opened without a sound. He looked at the Tongs and tossed it to Chrome. He picked up the remaining object, which was a silver key. He inserted the lock and he twisted. A click was heard before the staff fell to the ground. He kicked it away angrily. A person who wielded handcuffs as a weapon should _not_ be caught cuffed in a pair unwillingly.

"I'm going to bite the herbivore that started all of this to death," Hibari said, meaning Sawada Tsunayoshi. Chrome gulped and prayed for her boss' safety when they get back.

With a new victim in mind, Hibari led the way out of the house and towards the inn where they kept the carriage. The kids who they saw that morning were dismissed from school. They waved at them and chattered nonstop. Hibari could have bitten them to death at that moment even if they were less than a herbivore, but the little animals he saw within them made him reconsider.

Chrome was the first to drive the carriage out of the town as they made their way back to Villafrati, since Hibari was already napping.

* * *

><p><strong>In Villafrati<strong>

"Okay, so what's the plan?" Lambo hissed to Gokudera, who was squatting beside him behind the bushes. It was currently night time, the day after they realised that Melissa was missing. A small shed was what they were keeping an eye on.

"Shut up, you're too loud," Gokudera hissed back.

"Kufufufu, the two of you should think about shutting up before I do it for you," Mukuro's voice came to them even though they knew that the illusionist wasn't with them.

"Why you—!" Gokudera growled.

"Shh!"

"Don't _shhh_ me, stupid cow," Gokudera whispered back angrily.

"Well?" Lambo asked instead. "Did you come up with a plan?"

"Juudaime's right-hand man _always_ has a plan," Gokudera exclaimed.

_Right,_ Lambo wanted to say, but kept his thoughts to himself.

"I'm going to see who the one who managed to kidnap the girl was. Kufufufu. I hope that they're up for a good fight," Mukuro said and disappeared. Gokudera swore and turned to Lambo.

"You want the plan?"

Lambo nodded vigorously.

"Then wait until sun set."

"What!" Lambo exclaimed but Gokudera was already leaning back with his eyes closed.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

The sun glared at Giotto through the gap in the curtains he didn't manage to cover. He sat up and stretched. The boss yawned and rubbed his tired face—stress really wasn't doing him any good. "I wonder how they're doing," Giotto said out loud. According to Talbot, they should be coming back any day now, if everything went smoothly.

Giotto counted down the days as he got dressed. _Hm__…__so__…__they__'__ve __been __gone __for __well __over __a __week__…__no, __maybe __less__…__almost __a __week.__ Wait__…__does__ that __mean __the __party__'__s__—_

"In three days?" Giotto muttered. "Wasn't it…three days ago yesterday?"

A knock sounded at his door.

"Morning, Giotto," G said as the door opened. "You ready?"

"For what?" Giotto asked quickly. G stared at his boss with a cigarette hanging in his mouth. His face showed one of disbelief.

"You don't remember?"

"No…?" Giotto said slowly. What did he forget this time? He was sure that everything was going fine. They already bought and tasted the wine they were planning to use, got the decorations up, replaced broken vases, tables, chairs, walls, frames, windows, basically all the furniture in the mansion; swept the floors, rehearsed for the introductions, wrote out all the invitations, even got himself a hitman who won't do anything unless he felt like it, had his welcome speech ready, finished his paperwork up to this date—

"Guests will begin to arrive later this evening?" G hinted. "There are always a few families who arrive earlier than the date, as you should have remembered." Giotto sighed.

"Oh, _that?_ You made me worry for a moment there, G. I thought there was something big I was forgetting."

G blinked again. "But that _is_ a big thing." Giotto frowned, not understanding what G was trying to say.

"Master Kovato is one of the few guests who arrive early."

G watched in amusement as his best friend had nothing to say to this. Giotto stood here, adjusting his shirt cuff, frozen on the spot. His mouth was slightly open.

Giotto's world seemed to shatter then and there. Master Kovato, the "old fart," as Lampo would put it, and his own master, was coming. Today. This evening. Within thirteen hours. And he wasn't prepared.

He moved his mouth to form words but none came.

"You better get rid of that blankness, Primo. He's going to throw a fit if he sees that his hard work in grooming you to becoming a boss was all for nothing."

Giotto didn't seem to hear him. He was still registering the fact that his former teacher would be arriving and he didn't know how to act.

"_OH,__ HELL __NO_!" Was heard throughout the entire mansion. It awoke the late risers and startled those who were new to the family. The ones who have worked there for over a year knew that this was something that happened often and simply shrugged and hoped it wasn't anything too serious that would involve them.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-16th**_


	10. Sonar Mission Accomplished

**Chapter Ten**

Lambo nodded off just a few hours after Gokudera did. When he woke, it was almost sun set. He scrambled to his feet and turned to Gokudera, who was already kneeling by the bushes again. The Storm Guardian turned at the sound of leaves rustling and scoffed.

"About time you woke up, brat."

"Yare, yare, how long are you going to call me that? I'm not a brat," Lambo retorted halfheartedly. "How goes?"

"Almost ready. We need to wait for Pineapple Head's signal to say that the kidnappers are all in one place."

Lambo frowned.

"Shouldn't we want them separated so we can take them out without alerting the rest?"

"That takes too long," Gokudera said blankly. "With our capabilities, we can take down all five of them at once."

Lambo gulped. "F-F-F-F-FIVE?" He squeaked, his voice cracking. Gokudera glared.

"I see that you're still the same coward form ten years ago!"

"A-Am not!"

"Then you're in the plan!" Gokudera declared. "Although I can do fine without you; you'll just get in the way," he muttered under his breath.

Lambo heard him and his face turned red. "I won't get in the way, Octopus-Head!" He said with determination worthy for a Vongola. Gokudera cocked an eyebrow and snorted. A blue flare flew into the air silently just behind the shed.

"Let's go," Gokudera said to Lambo. He leaped up from their hiding place and into the open.

"H-Hey! Wait up!" Lambo called but did not move. Gokudera didn't even bother to look back.

Lambo groaned. "I don't want to go in there," Lambo muttered. "I'm definitely going to get hurt if I do!" He shivered. He _hated_ getting hurt. But then he heard a scream. He hesitated for another moment before running after the Octopus-Head. _Better__ me__ than __some __innocent __person, __though._

Gokudera tossed a dynamite stick into the front of the shed and ran after it. Once it exploded, the dust which flew up caused a smoke screen. He heard men shouting in alarm at each other. He tossed dynamite sticks in all those directions. A girl's yell was heard.

"Let go of me, you big ugly brute!"

The smoke cleared and Gokudera saw that one of the men was trying to sneak the girl away in the chaos.

"Hey," Gokudera shouted and threw a dynamite stick their way.

Melissa's eyes widened and turned angry. "You're going to kill me! Don't you have another way of helping!?"

Gokudera snorted. "Shut up! Just get out of there!"

He said no more as two of the other ones charged at him. They were easily defeated. He turned back to the girl who was now being forcefully shoved into a hole through the back way.

He was about to help her when he heard the eerie chuckle of the illusionist.

"Kufufu… Didn't your mother ever tell you never to turn your back to the enemy?"

Gokudera gave him a weird look which consisted of knitted eyebrows and a scrunched up as he turned around to face the two enemies whom he thought were already unconscious, he shouted to Mukuro, "What kind of mother did _you_ have?" Mukuro simply chuckled as he slashed at the fourth man. He produced a knife and Mukuro's eyes lit up. Gokudera's eyes examined the two in front of them as he charged.

_That blast should have at least seriously injured the bastards, if not killed them. How is it that they're still standing?_

The two produced twin blades and Gokudera swore loudly. He dodged as they ran at him. One swept a blade at his legs and he moved back. Another lunged at him but the sword was easily pushed aside by the back of Gokudera's hand. He grabbed the wrist and twisted until the weapons were dropped. There were still three men left. He picked up the blade himself and stared at it. How on earth was he supposed to use a sword? Sure, he had lessons as a kid for fencing, but it got so boring he quit after the first lesson.

They came at him again! He lifted the sword to parry and spread his feet so he was balanced. _That_ much he knew. If this continued on, they will soon figure out that he couldn't use a sword.

Another one swiped a sword at his torso. Gokudera stepped back and sliced the sword at the enemy to keep them away. He then swiftly activated his Vongola Gear. The air around them pulsed as the Vongola crest shimmered in the air before disappearing. Uri was released and was on Gokudera's head, digging her nails into his skull painfully. Gokudera's person was covered with dynamite sticks.

The swordsman's pace faltered at the sight of a walking bomb. Gokudera's sunglasses shaded his smirking eyes as an igniter was placed between his lips. He held the sword's hilt in his right hand and five dynamite sticks in the other, all of them were lit. These were covered with Storm Flames, making them more destructive than they already were. If this didn't finish them off, he didn't know what would.

* * *

><p>"Stop struggling, you brat!"<p>

_Why is everyone calling me a brat?_ Melissa wondered. It was the same one who caught her the day before. She nicknamed him Smokey because of his ugly and smelly scent of smoke that always lingered around him.

"You can let go of me, Smokey!" she screamed and yelped when he hit her head against the wall. Her vision blurred and cleared again but felt a hot trickle of blood go down the side of her head. "You injured me!"

"So what?"

Her head hurt and she fell to the ground. Smokey didn't bother helping her get back to her feet.

"Hey!" A voice echoed through the fight. Mukuro was already finished with the first victim and was now in the process of playing with him. He showed the man interesting images of bloody dolls, black voids, freaky laughs, half decomposed human bodies, and other gruesome things. Then he chuckled and began to attack the second person, using an illusion instead of his real self.

Gokudera was trying to defeat the two who were obviously skilled swordsmen.

Melissa saw this all in a glance as her head tilted up weakly. As she did so, she saw a blurry figure run at Smokey.

"Arrrrggg!" Lambo yelled and hit Smokey with the tips of his horns. They were covered with green Dying Will Flames. It was the purest kind she has seen in her entire life. She mouth was open in awe as she watched them fight. She was too weak to do anything, so she had to sit and wait.

Smokey punched Lambo, who stumbled back a few steps. He grabbed Melissa roughly. "Just tell us where the Sonar is!" he growled. Melissa, being too weak to respond, spat at him. There was no way she was going to tell them where the blue vial was.

"Double bombs!" She heard Gokudera shout in the background as Lambo got back to his feet.

"_Ferro__ corno __electro__ shock!__"_ Lambo shouted and rammed into Smokey once more. This time, the man was flung out the shed which was already half gone.

Melissa pressed a hand to her head groggily and almost fainted. She was amazed by the power Lambo had kept hidden from her all this time. Who knew that he was that strong? She was about to shout to Mukuro to not kill the enemy, but shut her mouth. With a second glance at the bodies lying around, she can tell that none of them were dead. She knew that the teens could have easily killed them; they didn't seem to have any qualms about it, but they did not kill them…most Mafiosi wouldn't hesitate to do so.

"Vongola, huh?" She muttered.

Lambo removed his helm and dashed to her. "Melissa! You're hurt!" He looked at her head worriedly.

She managed to give him a small smile. "It's just a scratch…"

"W-Well that's a very _big_ scratch," Lambo commented nervously and looked around. He had no idea how to do first aid. After all, why did he care for such things when he had Lawn Head with him at all times? It seems like he's about to pay for his laziness.

"G-Gokudera! A little help here!"

Gokudera hit his opponents on their heads for the fifth time and he made sure that they won't be getting back up any time soon. It was as if they didn't feel any pain…when they should be down and unconscious, they were on their feet, attacking Gokudera who was becoming weary. "What?" He growled at the Lightning Guardian. "I'm busy!"

"Melissa's bleeding a lot!"

Gokudera glanced at them as he dodged a blow. He turned back and kicked the legs out from under the men. He said, "Head wounds always look more serious than they are! She probably only has a small scratch somewhere on her head. Stupid cow! Just take her and leave!" Gokudera ran the circumference of the shed.

Lambo noticed that he was placing dynamites everywhere on the walls, stuck on with more explosives. He gulped and helped Melissa to her feet. "We'd better be gone before _those_ go off," he told her and slowly made their way out the hole.

"What do you mean?" she asked sleepily.

Lambo panicked and shook her roughly. "Hey-hey-hey! Don't fall asleep!"

"Nnn I'm fine," she murmured and shook her head until she felt her head clearing slightly.

"Kufufuf. You're in the way," Mukuro's voice said from behind them. Lambo hastily stepped away from Mukuro and the building. He looked over the illusionist and found that he left the scene unscathed. The only think out of place was his coat, which was dirtier than before. He turned back to the near ruins with Gokudera dancing with the five men who were now chasing after him. He chuckled again. Melissa managed to shiver slightly because of it.

"I suggest that you move away from here if you wish to live until I torture you the next time," Mukuro said and disappeared in a cloud of mist. Lambo jumped slightly when he remembered Gokudera's dangerous game-play. He practically carried Melissa and ran for cover.

Inside, Gokudera was making his way to the exit, timing it perfectly. Then the stupidest thing happened: he tripped.

"Shit!" He swore and turned around. The five were gaining on him now, with one even aiming to throw his blade at the teen. Gokudera growled and scrabbled to his feet. He tripped the first one and in the same motion pulled the sword arm of the second man, going with the flow. He pulled back instead of resisting and the man became unbalanced.

Gokudera could have killed him then and there but he decided just knock them out. Juudaime won't be happy if he heard of it. Then he ducked a sword swipe aimed for his neck from the third man and kicked him in the stomach. He moved away from the kick and Gokudera pulled his leg back. He took out a dynamite stick and tossed it at the remaining ones before jumping out the gaping hole.

_Five,_ the counted in his head and he regained his balance. _Four,_ he noticed Lambo waving at him crazily. _Three..._ he was running towards the stupid cow, shouting something at him to go farther away. He might've overdone it with the explosions. _Two__…_ He turned around and saw that nothing moved for a second.

_One._ The entire thing exploded and erupted into flames. The shock-wave threw Gokudera a few metres forward, toppling over Lambo.

The two groaned as Mukuro stood nearby chuckling at the sight.

"You're _heavy__" _Lambo grunted. Gokudera stood up and made sure to dig his elbow into Lambo's gut. "AH!" Lambo yelped. "Watch it, octopus-head!"

Gokudera snorted and looked at the girl who caused them all the trouble.

"Hey, you awake?" He nudged the girl with a toe.

"Nn…" she mumbled. "…Tired…" Gokudera swore again as he noticed how pale she was.

"Did the brat get hit anywhere else?" He asked Lambo. He shook his head slowly.

"I don't _think_ so."

"Tch! You're no help!" Gokudera knelt beside Melissa and examined her head gently with his glasses on. "I need to stop the bleeding. She's going to have a concussion later on. No more jumping around for a few days," he muttered.

Lambo gulped. "A-Um…Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Shut up. Hand me a piece of cloth."

"I…Don't have a piece of cloth." Gokudera turned around and glared.

"It's in your bag!"

"My bag!" Lambo exclaimed. "Why would I have that in my bag?"

"You have a first aid kit in there! Take it out!"

Lambo obeyed. He slung off the bag and rummaged around. "Yare, yare. A first aid kit, he says," Lambo muttered. "How am I supposed to know that I have that in my bag? How did it get there anyways? I don't bring them on my missions."

"Hurry up!" Gokudera barked. Lambo found the box and pulled it out. Candy wrappers and other devices popped out as well. He tossed Gokudera the box and shoved everything else back in.

Gokudera opened the box with an expert's eye and spotted a note. "Juudaime," he muttered and put the note back and took out the roll of bandages.

_Lambo,_

_I hope that you never need to use this—but then again, _

_Hopefully you'll use it when you need to. _

_Come back safely,_

_Tsuna_

Once Gokudera was finished treating her, he sat back and examined his handiwork. "Not bad for my first time," he observed the white band that was now circling her head, bound tightly. Melissa blinked and felt the cloth.

"Thanks…" she said. "Why'd you help me?"

The three looked at her. Mukuro's stare said that he wanted to possess her and see what other abilities she was hiding from him. Lambo looked on with concern and Gokudera with boredom.

"Che! Don't get me wrong, kid! I didn't save you because I wanted to!"

Melissa cocked her head. "Then why _did_ you?" Gokudera turned away and sniffed.

"Juudaime would have saved you if he were here," he replied gruffly and dragged Lambo to his feet and began to walk away from the girl who was still on the grass, watching them.

"Wait."

Lambo forced Gokudera to stop and turn around.

"What? You're keeping my boss waiting," Gokudera snapped.

"You have the Sonar?"

"Sonar?" Lambo repeated dumbly.

"The vial," Gokudera gritted through his teeth. "So what if I do?"

"That's not the full one."

"Kufufuf. And why should we believe you?" Mukuro said dangerously. Melissa shrugged coolly.

"I don't keep things on me in full condition. Otherwise, anyone can steal from me and cause harm to the world, although that itself is already very dangerous." Gokudera frowned and rolled the vial around in his pocket.

"What are we missing?" Lambo questioned. He scratched his head, not really sure what was going on.

"A drop of my blood," she said. Lambo's face twisted in confusion.

"Your _blood?__"_

Melissa rolled her eyes. "Duh? That's the only way I can make sure things aren't made without my consent."

"Baka," Gokudera snorted. "I can just take some blood from your forcefully and still have the vial made if that's how it is."

"True, but you also need my flame, which is not something you can get if I'm unconscious or unwilling."

"You—!"

"Pass it here so I can do it for you," she sighed and raised a hand. Gokudera eyed her suspiciously. She realised that she wasn't going to be given the Sonar, so she raised her head. "I'm not going to steal it back, okay?"

"You've done it before," Mukuro said. "But then again, if you try it again, I will simply have to kill you. Or torture you until you do what I want. Kufufufu!"

Lambo shivered and backed away. Melissa's eyes narrowed. "You have fulfilled my request, so it's my turn to seal the deal.|

"We don't have the six rings," Lambo said.

Melissa frowned inwardly. "Impossible. I sense them right here."

"WHAT!" Gokudera's anger exploded like the shed behind them. "YOU KNEW WHERE THEY WERE ALL ALONG AND YOU DIDN'T TELL US?"

Melissa shrugged. "You didn't ask."

"I did!" Gokudera shouted.

"Did not," she retorted.

"DID!"

"Not!"

"DID!"

"Do you want it or not? And you have also proven to me that you are Vongola, so I don't mind helping out!"

"But we don't have the six rings…" Lambo persisted.

Melissa sighed exasperatedly. "Yes you do," she said. Her eyes opened again and she said, "Show me the ones you have."Lambo and Gokudera brought them out and presented them to the girl. She picked them up one by one. "Mm, these are good, although I can use better." Gokudera bristled and would have retorted but she continued, "Lambo, you have the last one in your hair."

Gokudera turned on Lambo. "_STUPID_ COW!"

"Yare, yare…you're going to pop a vein if you shout that loud," Lambo rubbed his ears. Gokudera ignored him and grabbed tufts of his hair. "OW! OW! EASY ON THE HAIR! WHAT'S WITH YOU, OCTOPUS HEAD!" Lambo cried. Tears gathered in his eyes as he tried his best not to cry. Lambo's hair, being shorter, was easier to look through. He felt the strange, hard bump instantly. He fished it out and stared. His hair shadowed his eyes and he spoke.

"You…had this all along…and you didn't know…we spent…we spent so much time looking for _six_ of them…_and__ you __had__ one __of __them __all __along!__"_

"Kufu...Seems like someone made me go around for nothing," Mukuro said, not impressed.

"You didn't look for anything," Lambo said nervously and backed away from the two. He looked to Melissa for help but she simply shrugged.

"I'm in no condition to help anyone," she explained. "Here, give me the rings."

"Give the…Sonar," Gokudera said with his back still turned.

"Rings first."

"Vial,"

"Rings, please," she said with false kindness, laced with threats.

"Vial," Gokudera hissed.

"For god sake, would the two of you quit it?" Lambo cried from beneath the kicks Mukuro was giving him. "Save me instead!"

Gokudera snorted. "Shut up. Get the pineapple to stop yourself. You're supposed to be Juudaime's Lightning Guardian!" As Mukuro was about to scratch Lambo to possess him, they all heard the neigh of two horses they have become familiarised with.

_I__'__m__ SAVED!_ Lambo thought thankfully. He ran towards the carriage and skidded to a halt when he saw Hibari in the driver's seat. He became frightened and made sure to get out of the way before the prefect might think of trampling him.

But Hibari is _not_ Mukuro, and he does not simply _trample_ over people for fun. He stopped the horses a metre away from Lambo and glared. "Get in."

Not needing to be told twice, the teen opened the carriage's door and hopped in. Chrome was in a seat, looking alert. She gave Lambo a small smile.

"Chrome! Am I glad to see you! Mukuro was about to kill me!"

"Mukuro-sama tried to kill you? Why?"

Lambo didn't get a chance to answer because Gokudera and Melissa's voices rose until they could hear the conversation clearly.

"_JUST GIVE ME THE VIAL."_

"_THE HELL WITH YOU. I WANT MY RINGS."_

Hibari, who was quite content with the silence up till that moment, growled viciously and took out his pair of tonfa. He leaped off the seat and thrust one in Gokudera's face. It hit his forehead with a loud knock. The other tonfa bit into Melissa's neck. Both of them screamed at the sudden pain.

"What the hell was that for?" Gokudera demanded.

"For disrupting the peace, I will bite you to death." He attacked. Gokudera reached for his dynamite and dropped the rings in the process. He grimaced as he became too preoccupied with staying alive to pick up the rings. Melissa took this chance to slowly crawl towards them. She picked up each ring and put them all on a finger carefully. Gokudera saw this out of the corner of his eye and he swore again.

A few minutes later, Gokudera was holding a bruising left arm as Hibari put his weapon away.

"You're not done your fight, are you," Gokudera stated. Hibari turned.

"You're in no condition to give me a satisfying fight." With that, he left the herbivore. Melissa watched him leave. She turned to the approaching Storm Guardian.

"You might as well give me the Sonar. I'm actually grateful that you helped me out of that mess, Gokudera," she said with honest eyes. Gokudera looked away, embarrassed at being thanked.

"Whatever." He gave her the vial. She broke the blue wax seal set in place and shifted the vial from under her nose. She pricked her finger with a knife she had and winced then summoned a blue flame to her finger. The blood and flame intertwined and she stuck it above the opening of the vial. A drop of swirling Rain Flames went in and she sealed the wound with a balm she had on her. The colour of the vial turned to a darker shade of blue.

"I hate doing this. It's so disgusting…" she whined. Gokudera sweat-dropped as she did so.

"Just give it here!" He snapped. She stuck her tongue out and sealed the vial again. Then she handed it to him carefully.

"Make sure Talbot receives it safely! He'll know what to do with it."

Gokudera cocked a brow and said, "Che. Of course I'm going to take care of this! Juudaime needs it for us to go home!" Gokudera turned and raised a hand in farewell.

"Well, that wasn't as exciting a departure as I thought it would be," Melissa complained to herself. Then she looked at the sky. "Oh, no. I've been away from home for more than two days. Grampfathrer is going to be angry. Gokudera? I need a ride home!" She nagged at Gokudera and the others. Chrome softly convinced them to allow her to ride with them. Of course, Mukuro agreed, since there would another person who can help him annoy the Storm Guardian, and Gokudera had no say in the matter at all. Using his teeth, he bandaged some of the more serious wounds he got from Hibari and the kidnappers.

"Who were those kidnappers?" he asked Melissa. "They were too easy to beat! How'd they get you anyways?"

"They got me from behind!" She defended herself. "I wasn't expecting them to find me! And they were just Mafioso, nothing to worry about."

"Kufufu. I can see right through your worthless lie," Mukuro chuckled victoriously. Melissa snorted.

"Whatever. I'll deal with it myself. It was _your_ fault I was distracted in the first place."

"Say what?"

* * *

><p><strong>A Day Later<strong>

"I'm finally done!" Tsuna collapsed onto the ground then and there.

"Gao," Natsu said and sat down beside his partner. Tsuna smiled and patted him.

"Thanks a lot, Natsu. I couldn't have done it without you!"

Yamamoto laughed. "I wonder how Gokudera and the others are doing!"

"Of course they're going to be doing great TO THE _EXTREME!_ I'D KNOW WHY IF THEY AREN'T!" Ryohei roared loudly. This woke Rosso, who was napping on the porch. It was near noon.

"You're all done?" They nodded. He stood up and strolled to the container. "I can't believe that you idjits actually finished all this," he told them. Tsuna let out a sigh of relief. For once his clumsiness didn't cause more harm to their cause.

"_Dame-Tsuna, you're finally done. It took you long enough. If I were there with you, I bet you would have finished the day you started. I see that you've been clacking off."_

Tsuna paled significantly at the voice. He spun around and looked all over but could see no sign of the hitman.

"Reborn? Where are you?" He asked fearfully. _Oh__ kami, __please__ tell __me__ he__'__s __no __here!_ He begged.

"_Dame__ as __always. __Did__ you __always __forget __what__ I __gave__ you __before __you__ left?__"_ Tsuna remembered and pulled at his shirt. He tugged the necklace free and out came the little listening device Reborn had given him. Apparently, it was also a holographic device, for they were now staring at a Reborn who was luxuriously sitting behind a desk with both legs up drinking something Tsuna suspected to be espresso.

"Reborn!"

"Yo!" Yamamoto said cheerfully.

"MASTER PAO PAO! WE COMPLETED THE CHALLENGE TO THE _EXTREME!__"_ Tsuna's eardrums rang and he missed Reborn's next words. He nodded anyways, pretending that he didn't hear.

"_Oh, by the way, there's a party in two days that requires your attendance. You will be introduced as the first generation family's younger cousins coming to visit them from wherever you are now. Make sure you look presentable and wear the things I'm going to deliver to you. Your invitations will be with the package, and the only way to open it is with the Dying Will Flame."_

"_HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEE!__"_ Tsuna shrieked and let go of the device. It fell to his chest as he scrambled to take it off. Unfortunately, being the uncoordinated person he is, he tripped over Yamamoto's dog, Jirou. He yelped in surprise as Tsuna fell over. Then Jirou went to Tsuna's face and licked it. Tsuna shrieked and sat up. "Reborn!"

"_Stop dropping it. You're making me dizzy."_

"I don't want to go to any party! Not when the mafia's involved!" Tsuna shouted the complaint straight at the camera. Rosso was shaking his head, thinking that the world must be ending for young teenage boys to be talking to a box. He left them that way and went back to the house to prepare lunch—for himself.

"_It __will__ be__ good __practice __for__ you__–__even __better, __with __Primo __looking __after __you. __You __will __get__ first hand __experience __of __how __a __true __Vongola __Party __is __run.__ You __don__'__t __get __to__ see __the __founder __greet__ his __guests __every__day__.__"_

"Where _is_ the first generation?" Yamamoto asked. He peered around the screen but saw no signs of Primo or his Guardians.

"_Panicking __for __the __day __of,__" _Reborn said. _"__I__ also __couldn__'__t __have __them__ see__ me __talking __to __Leon, __otherwise __I__'__m __afraid __that__ they __won__'__t__ be __able __to __take __it. __Despite __the __fact__ that__ it __would__ be__ good__ to __test __how__ they __will __handle __the __situation, __I __need __all __of __them __sane __for __the __party.__"_

"NOOOO!" Tsuna pulled at his hair, still freaking out at the fact that he was going to have to present himself in front of hundreds of Mafia families. Then he paused. 'Reborn, what do you mean by ship the…stuff…_here__…__?_ Do you even know where we are?"

"_When__ you __come __back, __remind__ me __to__ train __you __in __Logistics.__ You __really __lack__ the __brains __to __become __a __boss.__"_ Tsuna gulped and reminded himself to _not_ remind Reborn to train him. _"__The__ suits __are__ being __delivered __by __the __same__ ship__ you __arrived__ in. __Make__ sure __you __are __on__ that __ship __by __the __end __of __today__ so __that __you __will __arrive __tomorrow__ morning.__ I __swear __I __will __skin __you __alive __if __you __aren__'__t __here __by __then. __Make__ sure __you__ don__'__t __act __disrespectfully __either.__"_ Tsuna nodded his head quickly in case Reborn changed his mind and wanted to torture him instead. As suddenly as he spoke to them, Reborn disconnected and the little device was once again just a neck accessory. Yamamoto laughed.

"So, shall we get going?"

"Going?" Tsuna repeated. "We still need to wait for everyone!" Yamamoto chuckled and scratched his head sheepishly.

"Haha, that's what I mean…should we continue on and meet them on the road?"

"Oh." Tsuna's face went red. He kicked himself for sounding so stupid. Then he thought of the immediate problem. "No, we'll stay here." Yamamoto cocked his head looking confused. Ryohei was also like that.

"Sawada, shouldn't we go to them? We can help them to the _extreme!__"_ Tsuna let out a small laugh.

"I don't know. I just feel that they'll turn up soon," he said confidently.

Yamamoto looked unconvinced for a moment longer before smiling. "You're right. We'll wait."

Not long after those words were release from his mouth, Tsuna spotted a small dot in the distance. His Hyper Intuition told him that they should be glad that whatever that was, was approaching. There was also the familiar feeling when a certain mist user was around.

"Who the hell?" Rosso said. He had walked over to them to tell the three that if they wanted to eat, the ingredients were still out on the table. They heard a feint sound that sounded very familiar to Tsuna's ears.

"It's Gokudera!"

"_Juu...aime__…"_ It was barely a whisper, but it was enough to lift their spirits. Being the brighter one of his two friends and the one who knew Reborn the most, Tsuna realised that they should take advantage of all the time they had.

"Onii-san, Yamamoto! Let's hurry and make more sandwiches for all of us, so we can eat on the way. It looks like they have a ride and that will save us time!" The two agreed and ran to the house. Tsuna bowed to Rosso.

"Thank you very much, Rosso-san! You saved us!" Rosso raised an eyebrow and pushed the toothpick to the side of his mouth.

"Sure, I helped you. You helped me as well. But saved you? Idjit, I do no such things or _anyone._ Here, if you're in such a hurry, you may as well take your five pieces from the pile." Tsuna's jaw dropped as he totally forgot what they came here for. All those days of labour, and he was going to leave empty handed? He hoped that Reborn would never hear of this.

By the time Gokudera was a kilometre away, they could hear him clearly.

"JUUUUUUDAAAAAIIIIIMMEEEEE!"

Tsuna stood to the side of the road with Yamamoto and Ryohei, a basket and a tin box by their feet. Tsuna cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted back.

"Gokudera-kun! Everyone! It's great to see you!"

Whatever else he was going to say was lost when Ryohei bellowed loudly, "OCTOPUS HEAD! YOU HAVE EVERYTHING, RIGHT?"

Tsuna could practically see steam rising from Gokudera as he stood on the driver's seat so they had a clear view of him.

"SHUT UP, TURF TOP! OF COURSE I DO! WHO DO YOU THINK I AM! I'M JUUDAIME'S RIGHT HAND MAN! OF COURSE I WILL DO EXACTLY AS JUUDAIME ORDERS!"

_I-I__ didn__'__t __order __you __to __do __anything, __Gokudera-kun__..._

Their ride came to a halt right in front of Tsuna. He had a feeling that Gokudera planned it that way. He jumped off and bowed deeply.

"Juudaime, I'm back!"

Tsuna smiled brightly. He was glad that Gokudera wasn't kneeling on the ground and cracking his skull open. "Ah. How'd it go? Are you guys alright?" He frowned as he noticed the cuts and bruises on most of them that were just beginning to show.

"We're perfectly fine, Juudaime! _Right?__"_ He shot the group a look saying, "don't you dare say otherwise!" Hibari was on the roof, ignoring them. Mukuro chuckled. Chrome politely greeted her boss. Lambo looked at them sleepily before shrugging and giving Tsuna two thumbs up.

"See, Juudaime? There's nothing to worry about us. They're all mild injuries!"

"Aha? But this is still bleeding, Gokudera," Yamamoto said and gently prodded a bandage on Gokudera's arm. He growled and threw a punch at Yamamoto, which was dodged.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna said in dismay. "Onii-san!"

"Don't need to say anything, Sawada! I will heal octopus head to the _extreme!__"_ Ryohei comforted the brunet. Tsuna smiled. Then it dropped.

"Oh no! Reborn said we have to meet the ship by tonight!"

"Reborn-san did?" Gokudera stops his argument with Ryohei for the moment. "Juudaime, we mustn't fail Reborn-san's expectations towards us! We'll get ready immediately!"

"But we didn't get to eat on the way here!" Lambo complained. "And the horses didn't get to rest!"

"Shut up! We have to go there now! It takes most of the day to get there from this stupid, damn place!"

"Ex_cuse __me,_" Rosso demanded. "This place is not stupid, Idjit!"

"Whatever! I don't have time to argue with you, red rooster!"

"What!"

Yamamoto stifled a laugh. Poor Rosso. He doesn't even know why he was called a rooster, when he didn't even have any hair that was red. _I__ bet __he__'__s __very__ confused!_

"_EXTREME!_ LET'S LEAVE!" Ryohei shouted. Yamamoto clambered into the carriage and Tsuna watched the steps cautiously. Knowing him, he'd probably fall flat on his face. But seeing that they were all waiting for him to go on, and Gokudera even offered a hand, Tsuna went in by himself. As he predicted, he fell.

"Juudame! Are you okay!"

"I'm fine…Gokudera…" Tsuna's voice was muffled from speaking into the floor. He picked himself up and sat beside Yamamoto and Chrome. He sat facing the front. Across from him sat Lambo and Mukuro. Hibari was on the roof. Gokudera was the driver and Ryohei was still outside…

"Onii-san, aren't you coming in?" Ryohei handed Yamamoto the basket, who then gave it to Lambo, who seemed to be the hungriest. Then up came the tin box which Yamamoto gave to Tsuna, who shook his head. He gave it to Chrome, who held it securely.

Ryohei said, "It's more _extreme_ to run there! I'll race the horses! They look like they can give me a good competition!"

"O-Okay…" Tsuna said.

"Juudaime," Gokudera whispered, "it's fine. Maybe we can even leave him behind." He made a dismissive gesture and Tsuna's mouth twitched.

_I__ don__'__t __think __so__…_ he thought.

"Someone else drive!" Gokudera growled. "I'm going to sit beside Juudaime!"

"I'll do it," Yamamoto offered. Gokudera's eyes narrowed.

"Does a baseball freak like you know how to control horses? I don't think so." Gokudera's gaze scanned the people in the carriage. He skipped over Mukuro, since the horses would just be killed. It would have to be Chrome or Lambo, because there was no way he was going to have his dear boss be the driver. And the cow was too busy stuffing his face with food.

"Hey, Dokuro! You can drive," Gokudera said. Chrome nodded quickly and stared at the box in her lap. She gave it to Gokudera.

"Kufufu, what makes you think that I will let you order Nagi around?" Mukuro said.

"Mukuro-sama…"

"She's done it before!" Gokudera argued. "You'll kill the horses and the cow is useless!" Mukruo thought of this for a moment and shrugged at the truth of this, while Lambo began to complain. Gokudera got in and pulled the door shut.

Chrome gave both horses a pat for their hard work and a few words of encouragement. Then she slapped the reins. Off they went with Ryohei running alongside them. Tsuna lurch forwards.

"Hieee!" Gokudera had only looked away for one moment, but in that moment, his boss had found himself in a tangle of his legs up and chin hung on the seat in front of him, limps twitching.

"Juudaime!"

"Kufufu. Sawada Tsunayoshi, you have proved to be as entertaining as you were the last time we met," Mukuro said.

"M…Mukuro…" Tsuna grunted. Yamamoto pulled him up by holding onto his left arm. "Thanks…Yamamoto…"

"Haha! No problem!"

"Damn you, I was going to help Juudaime!" Gokudera shouted. Tsuna winced inwardly as he sat between the two.

"Hm…I wonder if Hibari-san wants to eat anything," Tsuna said.

"That skylark ate the last of our provisions. He doesn't need any more," Mukuro said darkly.

"A-Ah…" Tsuna said understandingly. Although...not really.

"Finally, some real food!" Lambo cried with a mouth full of his second sandwich.

"Lambo! Don't eat all of it!" Tsuna exclaimed and snatched the basket from the hungry boy and took one for himself before anyone could steal more. "Yamamoto and Onii-san made these for all of us!"

"Maa, maa, Tsuna, we made plenty of extras!"

"Young Vongola, they treated me horribly on this trip!" Lambo said.

"No, we didn't! Stop spreading lies!"

"Kufufuf, what in hell are you talking about?" Mukuro asked eerily.

Lambo continued to tattletale on the rest of the group with Tsuna staring at him in dismay.

"Tsunayoshi, if you believe a word he says, I will possess you here and now. There is no reason for me to torture a weakling like him," Mukuro said with a serious face. Tsuna gulped.

"Don't you _dare_ threaten Juudaime! He's your own boss!" Gokudera barked.

"He's not my boss," Mukuro snapped instantly.

"No! He did! Young Vongola, you have to believe me!" Lambo said. "He dunked me in the well when we were coming back!"

"Oya? I did _not_ dunk you in the well," Mukuro said. The two of them turned to Tsuna as if seeing who he would believe.

_Nooo! __Why __are __they __looking__ at __me __like __that?_ Tsuna wailed in his head and mentally hit his head against a hard, brick wall. Then he sighed. No, he knew exactly why they were looking at him like that. And he knew exactly what Reborn would say if he hear his student's thoughts.

"You're the boss. Of course your subordinates will look at you for the final judgement." And then Reborn would most likely kick him for his insolence for fun.

"This is going to be a long ride…" Tsuna muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Gokudera asked. He had missed something he said and worried that it may be important, but he shook his head.

"No, no. There's nothing wrong," Tsuna hastened to ease his Guardian's worried face. "Nothing at all." As he said this, Mukuro attempted to stab Hibari—again.

"_Hiiiiiie!_ Mukuro, _what are you doing?"_

"Kufufufu."

"No, stop that! Don't stab Hibari-san! He's going to get angry!"

"Herbivores, I'll bite you to death," they heard Hibari say. Tsuna whimpered as he thought of all the destruction they will cause before he could get out.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay I'm serious. I wish someone did this to me so I'm doing this to anyone who is reading this and can't stop (if you can't, I'm pleased but-) because you have to stop right now. I mean...now. If you started this from ch1 and is still reading, you have my thanks! But I'm sure you have a life out there and you most likely probably have to study for your next chemistry or physics or whatever test/quiz/presentation, that you should really get to work on! Procrastination is a bad bad bad friend and you should stay away from it!

So go work on it! The story's not going anywhere! But your grades will go bye-bye if you don't go and work for them. Right now.

Thanks for reading this!

_**-LLM**_

_**Edited 2015-03-18th**_


	11. Mixed Personalities

**Chapter Eleven**

When they arrived at the harbour after many difficult hardships along the way, the ship was preparing to embark.

"Please! Wait for us!"

The sailor looked at them and was about to turn around to run. The reason was because of their appearance. The one in the lead, a brunet, was half limping with scratches all over his arms and several bruises. The boys behind him also sported similar injuries, some worse than others. The young girl seemed to be the only one free of them, as well as her brother and the one with a black jacket. He noticed that some of them actually had to be carried by someone else, and someone had a bandage on their head.

As they came closer, he recognised them as the trouble makers they had on the ship a while ago. "I thought they told you never to board this ship again!"

The captain came out and scowled at the sailor. He marched down the plank and gave the man a good earful. He was saying something along the lines of, "You idiot! Don't act so disrespectful in front of them!"

"But captain! You were the one who told them to not come back!"

"That was an act! Master Giotto told me that their identities mustn't be revealed until their return trip!" The captain said in response and cuffed the man's head before pulling him by the collar back to the ship. The captain used his free hand to salute Tsuna and his Guardians.

"My apologies! It was to prevent anyone with ill intentions from preying upon your party."

Gokudera scoffed and replied—just as well, since Tsuna was at a loss for words. They went through without paying and got the same rooms they had last time. They passed none of the other passengers as they went.

"I think I'm going to nap for a bit before dinner," Tsuna yawned. Yamamoto and Lambo followed suit.

"Hai, Juudaime! I'll wake you up when it's ready!"

"Thanks, Gokudera-kun. But you should also sleep. You look like you need it."

Gokudera was touched by his kindness although he should've already gotten used to it over the years. "I'll walk you to your room!"

"That's okay," Tsuna said with weak smile.

"I insist! After all," Gokudera murmured. "Even though this ship is for Mafia Famiglias in the Vongola Alliance, there could be spies on board.

"You worry too much, Gokudera-kun," his voice also dropped to a low whisper nonetheless. He opened his bedroom door, poked his head in, to show Gokudera that he had checked for hidden enemies; then he even made a show of looking under the bed and in the closets as well. He turned back to face Gokudera like a magician who had just done a magnificent trick.

"You see? No one's here!"

Gokudera came out from the ensuite bathroom and smiled.

"Hai, Juudaime! The room is clear!"

Tsuna stretched his sore limbs and slowly made his way to the bed like a zombie. He collapsed on it and managed to curl up under the blanket. His shoes were already neatly put against the wall by the door. His eyes closed and he slept.

Knocking sounded on his door. He forced his dry eyes to peel open. He tried to sit up. Was that really an hour? It felt more like seconds to him.

_Ite!_ He thought in agony and rubbed parts of himself and winced. Doing labour for so many days with only a few hours of rest was _not_ healthy in the slightest.

His half opened eyes scanned the room sleepily. For the first time since he walked in, he noticed a flat, square, plain coloured dark blue box. It was on his bedside table.

Tsuna's eyes narrowed as he tried to see through it to no avail. Sighing he touched it. He knew that it must be from Reborn and he dreaded to see what was inside. His mind was filled with all sorts of things from his imagination, until he just steeled himself and opened it carefully. His head was turned away with his left hand covering his face.

When nothing happened, he slowly looked into the box and dropped the lid and fell back on his bed. He rolled until he was at the edge of it and sat cross-legged. He flipped the lid all the way, revealing a neatly pressed black suit and pants. There was a white shirt to wear under as well as a vest to wear inside the jacket. There was a red tie. He rubbed the fabric and felt that it was slightly different than what he wore at home, but it was made with the best materials found in Italy. On top of all that was an envelope with the quickly scrawled but beautiful handwriting, Yoshi Sawada.

"Yoshi?" His face scrunched up at the name. Why was that…why wasn't his full name on the envelope? He picked it up and flipped it around. There was the Vongola seal on it and he quickly dropped it back to its place.

The knock came again. He closed the box.

"Juudaime," Gokudera's quiet voice said. Tsuna scratched his head, wondering when the last time he heard Gokudera that quiet was.

"Yeah, Gokudera-kun?" Tsuna called. He knew that it must be time to eat and tried to straighten the clothes he wore. Giving up, he looked around and spotted a shirt and pants folded neatly and put on a chair. Grateful for whoever put them there, he donned the clothing and opened the door. Gokudera was waiting patiently with a smile lighting up his face.

"Juudaime! It's time to eat! I got Yamamoto to save you a spot before all the others take up all the space."

"Thanks..." He pulled the door closed behind him and followed Gokudera. This time, they were not totally isolated from the rest of the passengers on board. The room they walked into was stuffy, but the windows allowed the cool night air to enter. There were many round tables set with pale orange table cloths. Most of the passengers were already seated and Tsuna stood at the doorway, startled by the amount of people on board. There were at least five hundred, give or take.

"Juudaime, we're that way," Gokudera gritted his teeth, because Ryohei and Yamamoto were waving at them to get their attention. Tsuna sweat-dropped as not only did they get _their_ attention, but at least three hundred more people's as well. Hibari wasn't there. As if he sensed that there would be a crowd, he decided to skip dinner altogether. As they walked on the smooth wooden planks, Tsuna unintentionally spotted small things about all of them that made his Hyper Intuition tell him that they were all Mafia. He tried to convince himself that just because they were rich, it didn't mean that they were in the Mafia, but he failed to convince even himself on that point.

His life now revolved around the mafia and he knew that it was the most likely conclusion, since they were also on a Vongola ship. There was also the Vongola party, so all these people were probably headed to the Vongola Mansion as well.

Everyone in the room was dressed casually, like him. But small things separated them from the common folk.

The men had gold pocket watches. Their rings were of high value.

Their attitudes showed that they were used to first class treatment. Some even wore earrings. Tsuna could spot tattoos on some of the young men as he past by. The older men had gold or silver fillings.

The women had pearl earrings. The metal attaching the earrings together were white gold. There were also small raindrops of rubies or emeralds. The diamonds were kept away from such a large ship gathering. He noticed expensive necklaces peeking out from what their dresses couldn't hide.

The clothes themselves held many answers. They had very detailed embroidery and designs. The colours were pale but that just made the designs stand out even more.

The shook his head and blinked his eyes in quick succession. Why were they dressed so plain if they clearly had wealth? Gokudera waited behind a seat for Tsuna to sit and the brunet was embarrassed by the gesture. He sat anyway. Then Gokudera took his seat to the right. Their table had a larger distance from the other ones. They sat in the middle of the room, which disappointed Tsuna because he was getting hot from the heat. He mentioned this to Gokudera, who frowned with worry.

"Juudaime…it's best if we stay clear of any windows or openings tonight."

"Eh?"

"The police are doing their rounds over water. A bell boy told me that they are suspecting that this ship belongs to the Vongola, so they're on the lookout. Even though the Vongola is a vigilant group, they have joined the mafia and that is all the law enforcers see. They might plan to raid the ship if any of these people are under their wanted list. It will be very bad if Juudaime got shot by a stray bullet."

Tsuna gulped and accepted the reasoning, but worried for everyone's safety.

* * *

><p>After a loud and painful dinner and dessert (luckily nothing happened), they all decided to meet in Tsuna's room. He waited there with Yamamoto as others went to their rooms to gather some things. The room had a round table to one side and that was where he sat, waiting for his Guardians. Yamamoto stood beside him, looking carefree. The tin box was at the centre of the table.<p>

In came Gokudera who was holding Lambo in a headlock even as Chrome stepped in after them with Mukuro appearing in the room right next to the table, scaring Tsuna right out of his skin. Hibari was spread out on the couch some distance away, with a hand covering a yawn.

"EXTREME MEETING, SAWADA! EVERYONE'S HERE!"

"Yare, yare! Stop making such a ruckus!"

"Kufufu. Let's just get this over with. Nagi, you have the Tongs, so I'm going to be taking my leave."

Then Chrome remembered that she wasn't the one in possession of the Tongs. She was about to tell Mukuro, but he had already left. She shrugged to herself.

"Haha, that was quick! And where did Mukuro disappear to?"

Tsuna sighed and rubbed his head. He stood up and cleared his throat, seeing if that can calm his family down. It helped a bit, but not entirely.

"Everyone, could you bring the things you found to the table please?"

"HAI, JUUDAIME!" Gokudera said enthusiastically and took out the vial of blue liquid and presented it to Tsuna. Tsuna shook his head and told Gokudera to keep holding it. Knowing his friends, the vial would shatter if left alone.

Hibari unfolded his crossed arms and walked to the table as if stalking prey. Tsuna gulped and forced himself to not shy away from his Cloud Guardian. Hibari let the Tongs fall to the table. Tsuna picked it up and examined them.

Meanwhile, Gokudera have him a detailed explanation of what happened in Villafrati. They _tried_ to explain to him during the ride, but they were all talking at once, which made it hard to comprehend. Now, surprisingly, everyone was silent, listening to Gokudera "report." Even Ryohei, the loudest of the group, was quiet because he wanted to hear about what happened.

Tsuna's hear skipped a beat when they mentioned the Bluebell-look-a-like being kidnapped by mafia members. His first thought wasn't even that she looked like Bluebell, but of her safety. Yamamoto was concerned when they reached the part with the swordsmen. Ryohei patted Lambo softly on the back for his courage. Lambo smiled back weakly and winced at the power Ryohei let into his "pat." Tsuna knew that nothing happened to his Guardians, but he was still relieved when Gokudera finished their story with no casualties.

"I didn't know that you could fight with a sword," Yamamoto laughed. "We should hold a competition one day!"

"YOSH! We'll have an _extreme_ boxing match when we get back, Sawada!"

"Onii-san! At a time like this Why bring that up _now?"_

"Of course I'll win against you in a sword fight, baseball freak!" Gokudera knew that Yamamoto excelled in it and that he had no way of actually winning, but he would chance it.

"Everyone!" Tsuna kept an eye out on Hibari, wondering when he would bite them all to death. That would _not_ be good at all. After a few minutes, the group settled down. Chrome took up the story after their departure, since Hibari seemed unwilling to speak.

Tsuna noticed her way of naming Hibari and smiled slightly. At least she's beginning to get familiar with them. Now if only she would stop calling him boss… Once she was finished, he began to get a bad feeling. There were too many coincidences with Byakuran's Guardians and the materials they need.

"Juudaime?"

"Tsuna?"

He looked up and saw his close friends looking at him. He flashed them a smile. "It's nothing. We have three of the things. Just four more to go! And that's on the other side…of the Vongola Mansion, which is probably why Reborn is telling us to return for this party as well…"

"Ah," Yamamoto said. "I found this box on my bed that had a suit. It looks like it fits me perfectly. That kid is sharp!"

"Oh…yeah, I have mine as well," Lambo said. The others nodded as well, except for Hibari.

"H-Hibari-san…w-will you eh…will you…attend?"

Hibari glanced at them and closed his eyes as he leaned against the wall behind Tsuna. "Hn."

"Don't ignore Juudaime's questions!"

"Gokudera-kun, it's fine!" Tsuna pulled at Gokudera's arm to keep him from bombing the ship. Again.

"Where are we keeping the things?" Lambo yawned, wanting to go back to bed. Like Tsuna, he was napping before Gokudera screamed for him to get up.

"I EXTREMELY HAVE NO IDEA!"

"How about we just keep them separated? That way we don't lose them all if something happens, haha!"

"Oi! Don't jinx us, baseball freak!"

"Maa, maa, I wasn't," Yamamoto raised his hands defensively and laughed cheerfully.

"Tch!"

"That's a good idea…" With those words coming from Tsuna, Gokudera resigned and accepted.

Chrome murmured under her breath in what seemed like a question or a wondering tone.

"Eh? Chrome, did you say something?"

"N-Nothing much, Boss…I was just wondering…what…how Talbot-san was planning on using these…"

Tsuna groaned inwardly while Lambo just outright groaned.

This was because the question of what Talbot was going to do with these things got Gokudera in his Theory-Mode. Hibari left instantly, leaving the Tongs for Chrome to take care of. He could care less for that thing. If it wasn't needed to get back to Namimori, he would have tossed it away long ago.

Yamamoto chuckled and tried to understand what Gokudera was showing them on the whiteboard. Chrome on the other hand was regretting voicing that question. Tsuna's eye twitched as the board was raidedly being covered by black squiggles of equations and laws of who-knows-what. Ryohei was quiet but Tsuna knew that he was going to scream at Gokudera and vice versa afterward.

* * *

><p>It was just two hours before dinner. The sky was a light pink, turning into a brilliant red, meaning there was practically no chance of rain tomorrow.<p>

Giotto stood rigid by the front gate of his mansion with only G beside him. The rest were inside, already prepared for the party.

"G, remind me…why am I standing out here?"

His best friend continued to look off into the distance where a small, barely distinguishable dot was beginning to appear, as he replied.

"Well. To start off, you panicked in the middle of your office." Giotto nodded miserably. "Then to add to that, Reborn got annoyed by you."

"He did?"

"And—well…yes. You were probably not paying attention. He hid it very well."

"Huh…"

"He was about to let you off the hook because you were Vongola. You didn't realise the trouble you were about to get into with the hitman and continued to pace around. I have a feeling that he hates that." G added to the list several other things that Giotto slightly recalled doing and winced at the more extreme ones.

"Reborn's killing intent came out even stronger than it usually does and you used the excuse of welcoming guests to get away, dragging me with you."

"I can't believe his aura made me think of this as an excuse. He probably planned it all."

_He's probably not making you do anything more because you're Vongola Primo…be thankful you have that title,_ G stomped his feet to the ground to release the numbness.

"Well," his boss sighed and squinted against the sun's setting glare. "At least Reborn agreed to be my hitman." He panicked slightly when he was able to make out details of the elegant carriage.

"Giotto…" G began, "I _really_ hate to say this, but Daemon's getting somewhere when he suggested—"

"No."

"Giotto, just hear me out."

"It's not necessary. No thank you. Suggestion has been noted. Not approved. Will not proceed. _End of discussion."_

G rolled his eyes and took out the cigarette in his mouth and snuffed it out on the ground. "You're wrong when you say that it's 'not necessary' because yes, they are."

"Not now. And I hope that it will never come to that."

"_That,_ is called wishful thinking. You're going to need an assassination squad at some point."

"I don't."

"You do."

"No."

"Giotto…"

"G!"

They stared at each other intently to see who would back down. Both were as stubborn as mules. The guard cleared his throat nervously.

"Primo…"

"Yes?"

The man was pointing at the carriage. Giotto straightened his back and took in a deep breath. He gathered his thoughts and put on a welcoming face. G pulled his hands from his pants pockets and put them to his sides and stood similarly to Giotto, alert and attentive.

"There shouldn't be anything that he can complain about…right?"

"No, I don't think so…" G frowned as he thought of his answer. He shrugged. "Kovato's a decent sort when things go his way."

"Who else is arriving tonight?"

"Cavallone, no doubt; they always come first...and I think Giglio Nero Famiglia…"

They trailed off, deep in thought, at the mention of the family whose boss was the one who entrusted the Vongola Rings to Giotto and his Guardians.

"You know, there's something strange about Sepira...not about Tri-ni-set. I understand that. But I feel like there's something else she's not telling us about the Arcobaleno. We haven't seen a single one of them, have we?"

"We'll talk about that later," G muttered as the carriage rolled through the gates.

Giotto erased his unease and smiled as his master stepped out. The man was dressed in a plain black suit. His short white hair was neatly trimmed and combed in place. He had a diamond tipped cane with him. He had shiny black shoes and was almost six feet tall. Not bad for an old guy like him. His face was hard from experience and fights, although his eyes still had a playful shine to them. But Giotto knew that there would be times that those eyes could be as cold as the Arctic ice.

"Master."

"Good evening, Kovato," G said.

The man nodded first to his pupil, then to his pupil's old friend and right hand man. "Giotto, G! It's great to see that neither of you have lost your heads."

Giotto sweat-dropped at the old greeting. He smiled and nodded knowingly.

G cocked an eyebrow and grinned as well. "Kind of hard to lose them with you snapping at our heels." The other two laughed.

"Shall we go in then?" Giotto gestured to the front door. "Did you bring anything with you, Master?"

"Just a pack. Someone already brought it in."

Primo nodded.

Inside, a butler took Kovato's coat. "Dinner will be ready in about two hours."

"I want to meet your hitman."

"Ah…okay…" Giotto sighed and hoped that the topic wouldn't be brought up until later. "He's usually just around."

"Around?"

Giotto had a feeling that he really shouldn't have said that. "He is supposed to be with you at all times. What do you mean by "around"?"

"It means just that," the shadows in the corridor they were walking in shifted. Reborn stepped into the light and pauses to take in Kovato's appearance and personality. Then he raised his fedora from his head slightly and replaced it in a greeting. The master nodded gravely. The two stared at each other for what seemed like years. At one point, Lampo's head appeared at the other side of the corridor with a cupcake half in his mouth. He stumbled and nearly tripped at the sight. Without a word or a greeting, he turned right around before his presence was discovered.

Reborn broke the tense silence with a smirk, returned to him by none other than Kovato.

"You're not permanent, are you." That was said in a statement more than a question. Reborn cocked an eyebrow. His dark eyes revealed nothing.

"He'll do," Kovato turned to Giotto and patted him on the back. "He's perfect. How long is he staying before you get an actual one?"

"A few weeks…days…?" Giotto glanced at Reborn.

"A few more weeks."

Giotto nodded.

"Well, it was nice meeting you…?"

"Reborn."

"Reborn…Yes. I will see you later." Reborn tilted his fedora. The master walked away.

Giotto let out a sigh. "Well that's over with."

"He…didn't seem as scary and strict as last time," G observed.

"Maybe old age does that to people," Giotto said. "I really hope that's true. He's already hitting his seventies."

"Tsuna will be returning with the items by tomorrow evening, which is also when a quarter of the guests will arrive by your ship."

"That's a relief."

"Hey! Giotto!" A side entrance slammed and they heard the voice echo from two stories down.

"It's Cavallone…" G scoffed and rolled his eyes. Reborn remained expressionless, although he was wondering about his previous pupil's ancestor.

The blond grinned at his friend and walked as fast as he could without losing dignity. He spotted his friend from far up with a heavy brown coat and the charms he was placing on his maids. Their conversation drifted to their ears as they walked down the staircase.

"Good evening, Cavallone Primo." A butler took his coat. "Master Giotto will be here shortly, after hearing your loud voice."

"Thanks. When's dinner? I'm _famished!_"

"It won't be long, Cavallone Primo. Do you have company with you?"

"Yeah. I left them at the front gate. They probably still think that I'm in the back seat or something."

"That doesn't sound like a good idea." Onido, otherwise known as Cavallone Primo, clasped hands with his friend when they were within reach.

"It has been a long time! When was the last time we saw each other?"

"I believe that it was the meeting a few months back."

Onido had blond, wavy hair. His eyes were blue and looked every inch as a mafia boss fooling around can look.

G had spotted Lampo walking by with a tray filled with food.

"Oi!" Lampo froze for a moment before running off. "Stay right there! You really don't know how important today is, do you!"

Onido chuckled and Giotto sighed. "There they go again. G is acting so childish these days."

"Well, you'd best enjoy all you can before tomorrow."

"Hm?"

"The young, _beautiful_ daughters of the families will be coming and you know what _that_ means."

Giotto paled and groaned quietly. "I can't take this anymore."

"Then just chose one of them." Onido barked out a laugh at Giotto's expression.

"No. That's too harsh, even for you, Onido! You know that favouring one famiglia over the other won't be a good idea."

Onido shrugged and gently prodded his friend so they could move somewhere else to talk. "Well, they're the ones who are trying to have you court their daughter. They can't really blame you if you actually chose one of those ladies."

"Maybe I should have been born ugly."

"Tsk, tsk. If you were born ugly, you would have never gotten away with all the mischief you used to get into in the old days."

"I can't believe how true that is." They turned and saw G coming back to them with Lampo walking beside him with his hands in his pockets and green hair ruffled with a grim expression on his face.

"Giotto…I have something to tell you…" Lampo said.

"I don't want to hear it," he mutters to himself.

"Half the desserts are gone."

"…"

Onido raised his eyebrows, wondering why this concerned Giotto.

Giotto was wondering the same thing. "So?"

"The cook's going to be mad."

"And…?"

"And…I'm sorry."

"…For—oh, god." Giotto's jaw slackened as he knew what Lampo was trying to say. "You did _not_ tell him I ate them."

Lampo raised his hands in an apologetic way. "Sorry, Giotto. You were the first name that came to mind."

Giotto's eyes were half open and were fluttering like crazy. His mouth was twitching into a smile that promised trouble. "Lampo…"

G leaned against the wall to let Lampo deal with the punishment which was probably not as extreme as Primo made it seem. He had already done his part in making the brat come along. Reborn snorted and didn't stay to watch.

* * *

><p>When Tsuna awoke the next morning, he felt much better. No more blasted cramps, headaches, or bruises for that matter. He got dressed in his usual clothing and left his room. He met no one along the way to the restaurant which was quite surprising for him, since he thought that Gokudera or Yamamoto would have already been up and about to greet him. Or even to hear Ryohei's morning training for that matter.<p>

"Juudaime!" He turned, expecting to see Gokudera. To his confusion, he saw Ryohei instead.

"Onii…san…?"

"Juudaime, you're up early!"

"U-Um…Are you…alright?" He inched away from his Sun Guardian instinctively. "Why…are you calling me Juudiame?"

"Because, you're Juudaime!" Ryohei gave him a confused look which was later shrugged off. "Anyways, Juudaime! Do you want to get some breakfast with me?"

"Eto…"

"Lets' go!"

"Waah! Wait, Onii-san!"

"No waiting, Juudaime! You have to eat, or else you'll lose your strength!"

"But!"

Ryohei pulled Tsuna into the restaurant and sat at the bar, where they could get their food immediately. A head popped up.

"_HIIIIIIIIIIIIE!"_ Tsuna fell off his booth and onto the floor. Ryohei looked down at him, concerned. The person behind the counter leaned to look at him as well.

"Sawada? What are you doing on the floor!"

"Y-Yamamoto!" Tsuna screamed. "Y-You're cal—calling me…_Sawada?_" His glance turned from Ryohei to Yamamoto and back again, horrified. What was going on?

"Yeah…oh course I'm calling you Sawada! What else would I call you?" Tsuna's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish. Yamamoto laughed. "You're extremely funny sometimes!" The brunet's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. Was some kind of personality change happening to all his friends?

"Juudaime, are you okay?" Ryohei asked again. He helped Tsuna to his feet lightly, which was something Tsuna thought could never happen with Ryohei.

"Well, would you like to eat anything?" Tsuna answered absentmindedly, not really knowing what he ordered. Ryohei offered him a spoon and he accepted.

Before he finished swallowing the first bite, someone else came barging in. _It must be Lambo. He's the only one who's that loud…No wait…he's only like that as his younger self. His older self is more mature! Who's that?_ Tsuna turned his head and choked on his food.

"Juudaime! Are you okay?" Ryohei exclaimed and pounded on Tsuna's back until the food came out.

"G-Gokudera-kun!"

"Baka-Tsuna! Gokudera-san has arrived! Give me food!" Gokudera cried. Tsuna's spoon dropped to the floor with a clatter. Yamamoto and Ryohei didn't seem to be surprised to see Gokudera like that.

"Damn you, stupid octopus! You're disrupting Juudaime's meal!"

"Whatever!"

"I can't take this anymore! I'm going back to bed!"

"Juudaime, wait for me!"

"See what you did now, octopus head? Sawada's going back to his room! You should extremely apologise."

"Nyee!" Gokudera's tongue was sticking out. Tsuna ran away as fast as he could, trying to shake off the images he saw.

"Why was Gokudera-kun acting like five year old Lambo?"

"Herbivore. What are you doing, wandering the halls so early? I'll stab you to death for that."

Tsuna sighed with relief. "Hibari-san! Am I glad to see _you!_" He turned around, hoping to find his Cloud Guardian with his pair of tonfa, if only to see a normal occurrence.

No, it wasn't Hibari. It was—

"M-MUKURO!" He backed away and tripped. The male illusionist had his trident in his right hand, ready to be used on innocent tuna fishes. "N-Nothing! I'll be leaving you now! Sorry!" He ran for his life. He distinctively heard a "hn" and ran faster. This was not normal. Not in the slightest. And this was definitely not a prank, because there was no way Mukuro would want to act like Hibari, nor would Hibari let Mukuro get away with imitating him poorly. He ran and ran, until he bumped into someone. Both of them fell to the ground.

"Ow…"

"B-Boss?" He cringed at the voice. That was _not_ Chrome. His eyes opened slowly and saw Lambo.

"Ch—Lambo…"

"Boss…what are you doing to early in the morning?" He cocked his head to the side curiously.

Tsuna stood. "Sorry for bumping into you…here, let me help you up."

"Th-Thanks."

"Do you know what happened to everyone?" Lambo cocked his head and blushed when Tsuna continued to stare longer. He fidgeted with his hands and tugged at his sleeves.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Boss…sorry I wasn't of any help."

"J-Just stay calm, Lambo. I have to go now. I'll see you later." _Back to normal, that is._ He ran, hoping to not bump into any of his other Guardians on the way to his room. His blood ran cold when he thought of the remaining Guardians and their personality changes.

_W-Who got Mukuro's personality! Oh dear, I hope it's not Chrome. She looked so scary when Daemon possessed her. With Mukuro's evil intentions, I don't want to know how things will turn out._ But no, his wishes could not be answered because he saw a figure stepping out of a room. He slowed to a walk and gulped. That was Hibari, his aloof Guardian. He played with the idea of him acting like Yamamoto. He would very much prefer that to Mukuro.

"Oya? What have we here? A little snack?" Hibari's eyes were cold and evil-looking. One of them was red, with the kanji character of six.

"Ah…H-Hibari…" Tsuna stuttered. _Eh? Why am I feeling so calm? Shouldn't I be panicking right now?_

"Kufufu. Where is Nagi?"

"Chrome? She's…somewhere on that side…?" He pointed behind him and grinned. _Okay, something's seriously wrong. Why am I smiling at Mukuro of all people!"_

"Kufufu. Don't look so jealous. I'll have your body in my possession soon enough."

He disappeared as mist clouded the space where he was standing. _This is terrifying!_ Just as he thought that, he breathed deeply and continued walking. He found himself humming a happy tune without knowing. He passed by no one for a few minutes and climbed the stairs.

"EEP!" A body fell to the floor.

Tsuna turned his head and frowned with worry. "Hey, need a hand?" He was smiling again and walked towards the figure.

"Ow…eh? Thank you, Tsuna."

"Haha, no problem." He helped Chrome to her feet.

"Er…why are you awake so early, Tsuna?" She asked, to loosen up the awkward atmosphere. Tsuna flashed a smile and scratched the back of his head with the left hand.

"I don't know, actually. Haha."

"Y-You better hope that Hibari-san doesn't catch us…he might stab us to death for disturbing his sleep!" Tsuna's eyes widened. _M-My identity has been stolen?_ He screamed in his head, even when calmness flooded his thoughts afterwards.

"Guess I'd better get going then. Bye!" He and Chrome were going to walk their separate ways but he heard Chrome scream.

"HIIIIIIIE!"

Tsuna rushed back to the stairs and looked down. He winced. Chrome was at the end of it, sprawled on the ground. Her skirt covered enough cleavage for Tsuna not to have a nosebleed but he still blushed.

"Are you okay?"

Chrome got up quickly and smiled. Then she waved at him.

"Fine, fine! I'm…just going to get something to eat now!" Tsuna watched as Chrome ran somewhere. He sweat-dropped. "Am I that bad bad of a liar?" he asked himself. He could clearly see that Chrome was still in pain and that she didn't want him to worry.

"Hang on…then who am _I_?" He decided to ignore the thought of rushing back to his bed and hiding beneath his covers. Instead, his feet brought him back to the dining hall, which was where everyone was gathered; not good. Hibari and Mukuro were fighting against each other. Chrome was at the sidelines, trying to calm them down. Lambo was hiding behind Yamamoto, who was cheering them on. Ryohei growled and shouted for them to stop. Tsuna smiled like an idiot and walked towards them.

"Maa, maa, why don't you all stop?" He allowed a bit of seriousness to creep into his voice and that did the trick. All of them paused to look at him.

"That was extreme, Sawada! You stopped them from fighting each other just like that!" Yamamoto exclaimed.

"Of course he did that! He's Juudaime!"

"Lambo-san wants more candy!" Tsuna closed his eyes and tried to block out the sound. This was making his head spin! The voices were coming out of the wrong people! What has happened to the world!

"Herbivore. You dare disturb my fight? I shall stab you to death!"

"Kufufu. Wait your turn, Pineapple Head. I was going to torture him first." Tsuna sweat-dropped at hearing Mukuro call…Hibari… Pineapple Head. Both of them advanced on him.

"Ahahaha…why don't we just talk things through, ne?" Oh. The realisation of whose personality he stole just hit him as the first tonfa landed.

"Hiiiee! Hibari-san! Mukuro! Stop! You'll kill him! Tsuna!"

* * *

><p>"<em><strong>HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEE!"<strong>_ Tsuna sat up as fast as a bullet and panted nonstop. He felt his head, shoulders, chest and face. No cracks, no bruises. He felt like himself. What about his personality? That scream should have proven it. His heart pounded still. He heard running to his door.

"That should be Gokudera-kun…"

"JUUDAIME! ARE YOU OKAY! WHERE'S THE ENEMY? I'LL BOMB THEM IF THEY SO MUCH AS HARM A HAIR ON YOU!" Gokudera was in the doorway with dynamite sticks in each hand. He scanned the room and found that there was no enemy, although his boss was sitting him his bed, his night clothes soaked through with sweat. The horror in the brown eyes slowly disappeared and a loud sigh was released. Tsuna collapsed back to his bed and Gokudera rushed over.

"Juudaime, are you feeling well?" He felt his forehead and found that it was burning. His panicking self instantly jumped to the conclusion that he was coming down with a fever, but his other self calculated that it was probably just the nightmare that caused the burning forehead. He scoffed at the pun and returned his attention back to Tsuna.

"I'm okay, Gokudera-kun. You have no idea how glad I am to see you…" Gokudera beamed at the words and his eyes sparkled. Tsuna glanced his way and smiled inwardly. Some things will never change.

"But Juudaime, you shouted so loudly…"

"Ahaha…that was just a dream nothing to worry about, Gokudera-kun." He yawned and stretched his arms. He noticed that the room was very bright.

"Eh! What time is it?"

"Almost noon, Juudaime."

"Hiie! I thought we were supposed to arrive in the morning!"

"We have, Juudaime—they're just waiting for sun set so we can be docked without too many people looking around."

"Oh…"

"Yare, yare. Young Vongola, you're still in bed? Even I'm up and about."

"Shut it, stupid cow! Juudaime needs more rest than you can ever hope for!"

Lambo glared at Gokudera, who glared right back. It had more effect on the former.

"Let's not argue here..." Tsuna got out of the bed and straightened it out of habit from having Reborn threatening to blow off his head each time he didn't clean his room.

"Hai, Juudaime!"

"Whatever. Lawn head told me to get you two over there to eat your lunch to boost up your energy for the "extreme" party tomorrow night."

"If it's tomorrow night, why do I have to wear the darn suit now? Damn that Reborn!"

"_A Mafioso should always look proper!"_ Tsuna looked at his desk and found Reborn's image projecting from the device.

"Reborn-san!"

"Hiie…"

"I'm gone." Lambo walked out the room as calmly as he could.

Reborn was enjoying his afternoon meal with espresso, which as always present.

"_Primo's going to introduce you to his master. You're distant cousins of the family of a sort. I found out that the master doesn't know everything about them, so it will be easy to just throw you into the family tree for now."_

"Reborn, stop popping up at the most random times!"

"_Who was the one who taught you to snap at your teacher, Dame-Tsuna? It certainly wasn't me. If I find out that it was Dino…"_ Tsuna gulped. _"Make sure you don't slip tonight, or tomorrow. Your life depends on it."_ Reborn disconnected the video and the room went silent for a few seconds before Gokudera began talking.

"Juudaime! I won't fail you as your right-hand man! I'll make sure everyone is ready for tonight."

"There's no need—ah, wait, Gokudera-kun!" He chased after his friend who was leading them to the restaurant.

* * *

><p><strong>A few hours later…<strong>

"_Ahem! Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen,"_ the captain said. _"We will be arriving at the harbour in two hours. Please prepare and present yourselves on the deck by then."_

"That's our cue," Yamamoto laughed. "Time to get changed."

Tsuna nodded. "Let's go."

Hibari was already gone and Mukuro chuckled evilly, making Tsuna wonder if he was going to…misbehave during the party.

Tsuna pulled out the suit and stared at it. Someone had already taken it out of the box and had it ironed. It was hanging in the closet, and was now flat on his bed. He folded his arms across his chest and gave it a soft glare. Then he sighed and began to change. When he was done, he looked in the mirror and adjusted the collar. The tie was in a pocket, along with his mittens. He had to admit that he looked fine. As long as he didn't trip over his own feet, that is. Someone knocked on the door

"Juudaime, are you ready?"

"Yeah." He opened the door and saw Gokudera in the similar costume. He also had a red tie. Behind him his other Guardians emerged from their respected rooms. All were looking smart.

In Chrome's case, she had an elegant indigo coloured dress that reached just an inch from touching the floor. It fit her perfectly, showing off her slim body. Her black eye patch was still there, but her trident was nowhere in sight. Then he spotted the small bag that came with the gown by her feet. He calmed down. Yes, he didn't like fighting, but he was comforted to know that she had her weapon to defend herself. She also wore the Mist Earrings, which suited the occasion just fine.

Tsuna was embarrassed to leave their hallway, since they were dressed so. But with Yamamoto dragging him he had no choice.

"See, Tsuna? We're not the only ones!" Yamamoto let out a loud laugh. Tsuna let loose a smile when he saw the truth. Everyone else on the deck was dressed just as elegant, if not better. They were ready for the party even though it wasn't happening today.

_I guess we have to enter the mansion grandly,_ he mused.

"Juudaime, this way! I see our carriage, brought here by the Vongola!"

They moved to the railing and saw what he meant. The setting sun was masking the riches of the carriage to seem inconspicuous, but the emblem on the side was ruining the attempt.

When the ship was docked, they were the first ones off. There were only a few people around to see them, and those were commoners who knew about the vigilant group's ball. They made sure to steer clear away from these mafia people.

Gokudera held out the carriage door for Tsuna, who thanked him. Then he went in himself, not caring about the others. Hibari glared at the packed carriage and chose to ride in the back, where he could be by himself.

"We're ready!" Gokudera told the driver. They rolled towards the Vongola Mansion.

* * *

><p><strong><em>-LLM<em>**

**_Edited 2015-03-18th_**


	12. Party's in the House!

**Chapter Twelve **

The driver feared for his life right now, and was making the horses go as fast as they could without killing them. Behind him were eight dangerous teenagers who knew how to fight, curse whoever taught them how.

Mukuro was making the entire carriage a nightmare for all of them, while the rest tried to resist. Lambo gave up and cried for the entire length of the ride. Gokudera was screaming at Mukuro for scaring Tsuna, and Tsuna was trying to calm down Gokudera who was now trying to push Mukuro out of the carriage.

Ryohei was in the process of standing to his full height to cheer them both on this "extreme fight" even as Tsuna tried to pull them down and get things under control. Hibari was relaxing in the small platform at the back. It was small, but big enough to not bother him. The ruckus inside caused him to stand on the platform; before, he was sitting as to not ruin the suit. Even he knew when to look presentable. But that didn't mean he would forgive anyone who disturbed him. Hibird took flight and headed to the mansion.

Chrome was sitting straight and alert, eyebrows knitted. They had to look presentable, right?

Mukuro attempted to stab at Gokudera and Gokudera grabbed hold of the trident's handle.

"EEEP! Mukuro and Gokudera-kun! Please stop fighting! And Onii-san, could you sit back down? You're going to make a hole in the roof!"

"Haha, Tsuna, I think we should quiet down a bit. We're approaching the mansion."

"Hiie…" Tsuna gulped audibly and calmed down. He closed his eyes. Although he wanted to scream and pull all his hair out, the vicious training he endured through stopped him from acting so immature. He just knew that Reborn would be there waiting for them along with the rest of the family. He looked behind them and saw dust. Their driver must have left the others far behind. That solved one problem of them looking like fools in front of a large crowd.

He cried inwardly. Usually when he was about to do what he was planning to do now, Reborn was at his side, and making sure that he was doing it right. Another deep breath was taken before his brown chocolate eyes opened again. Yamamoto noticed that his small friend was much calmer and he smiled. Tsuna put a comforting hand on Lambo's shoulder and the teen stopped crying immediately.

"Mukuro, Gokudera…stop."

* * *

><p>"BOSS!" Giotto looked up from his reading and looked questioningly at the guard. He could tell that there was no immediate danger and wanted the young man to calm down.<p>

"Good evening." Indeed, the man was taken aback by the greeting.

"_Huff…_Good evening…Boss…"

"Take a moment to catch your breath please. You look like you might faint," he joked.

"Well…Boss…_huff…_I _did_ have to run up four sets of stairs and three hallways…"

Giotto smiled apologetically. "My apologies for that."

"S-Sorry, Boss! I didn't mean it that way!" Giotto waved a hand and put a bookmark in the book and stood. He was dressed in fine attire, waiting for dinner and the guests to arrive.

"What's the problem?"

"There's the Vongola carriage arriving rather quickly! It's still kilometres away, but it looks as if it will be here in a couple of minutes. No," he corrected himself after adding in the time he wasted looking for Primo. "Make that a few seconds."

"Thank you," Giotto picked up his cape and put it on gracefully. "Are the others arriving as well?"

"Yes, but they seem to be taking their time, unlike the ones in the Vongola carriage…Boss…"

"Mm?"

"Could it be that whoever is in the Vongola carriage are actually imposters…trying to crash the party?"

Giotto stopped outside the door and looked back at the guard, who was right behind him, ready to leave when his boss did. Giotto closed the door firmly shut.

"No, that's not possible. The ones in there will never let imposters take their places. And I hope that no one will mistake them for enemies, because they are very important to the Vongola. They are distant cousins to me and my Guardians and I expect you to treat them with the same respect as you would treat me."

"Y-Yes sir!" He gave Giotto a sharp salute, who nodded in return.

"Good. Now let's greet Yoshi and his friends."

"Yes, Boss."

Giotto signed inwardly as to not make the guard wonder if he did anything wrong to make his boss depressed. The reason for this sigh is that usually, he would have already asked the man to call him Giotto instead. But, because the Vongola party was coming and all the guests would be mafia-based families, they would disapprove and look down on the Vongola if they had such close relation between the Boss and his subordinates.

By the time the two men were at the front entrance, Tsuna and his Guardians were already getting out of their ride. They were now standing patiently, waiting for Giotto to welcome them into the Vongola Mansion. Giotto abruptly stopped and stared.

"…Boss?"

Giotto shook his head in wonder. How were they not fighting with each other? This was…well. This was a _miracle!_

"Giotto, who are these _kids?_" Kovato asked. He and Giotto's Guardians, including Reborn were present. Reborn's fedora was hiding half his face in the already weak torch light.

"They are our distant cousins."

"Our—?" G jabbed Daemon's side to shut him up. Kovato gave them a suspicious glance but went back to looking at the kids who were dressed formally and fashionably.

"Why was I not aware that you had cousins?"

"They are distant cousins, most are from Japan. They have recently moved from there to Sicily and are coming for the party." Giotto heated up as he forced himself to not look nervous, but casual, in front of his master.

"That kid's no cousin of mine!" Lampo argued. "He's too annoying."

Kovato shot the Lightning Guardian a glare and said, "Don't think that I don't know you stole food to eat instead of finishing your work, young man. I may be old, but I can still give you a good beating." Lampo turned away.

"Giotto-san."

"Welcome back, Yoshi."

Tsuna smiled politely and Giotto noted the confusion of the name. He had his invitation in his breast pocket as did the others. Chrome had hers in her bag. They put them there after showing it to the guards.

All of them nodded and said their greetings, even Mukuro and Hibari, although they did it subtly. Giotto was impressed that Ryohei managed to bring his voice down a few notches.

"This is my master, Kovato. Master Kovato, Yoshi Sawada is my cousin." He went on to introduce the rest of the group, and Kovato nodded at each turn.

"So…you're the unknown cousin of Giotto."

Tsuna's insides churned at the thought of what might happen if he slipped. He felt a deadly aura make itself known off to his right. The brunet flinched and forced himself to not scream or back away.

If you mess up, expect training from dawn to midnight every day after this, was what Reborn's eyes told Tsuna. Of course, he only saw this because Reborn allowed him to. Otherwise, those eyes were just bottomless pits of promised torture.

"I have been far from Italy for many years, so it isn't so strange that Giotto-san doesn't mention me," Tsuna said extra polite. He could feel that the man didn't really approve of him and his friends and that made him even more nervous. If this man was anything like Reborn…

"Ten laps around the mansion! Now! Then go and clean every room in the house and put on the servant's uniform! You'll be doing their work while they relax!"

"Yoshi?"

Tsuna looked up. His face was calm, but he was freaking out in his head. "Hai—I mean, yes?"

"I was asking, how far is your education?"

"Oh. It's...where it should be. We're taking winter break at the moment, which is why we came here as a vacation."

"Hm. Well, you chose a sorry vacation spot then, considering the fact that you and your friends look a lot like your older cousins; you may be mistaken for them and come to harm. How foolish of Giotto to even think about inviting you here."

"Master…" Giotto sighed. "They can fight…"

"Oh ho!" Kovato's eyebrows shot up. "That changes things. I would like to see them in action while I'm here."

Tsuna managed to nudge Gokudera so he won't talk back, and give Mukuro and Hibari a pleading look.

"Haha! That should be fun. Are you strong?" Yamamoto put his hands together behind his head. Hibari and Mukuro shrugged off their retort because Yamamoto already asked their question.

The first generation Guardians held their breath.

"You question me, boy?"

"N…no, I was just…curious…" he tried to laugh it off as a drop of sweat rolled down his face.

_Yamamoto! Did you _have_ to ask that question? We're definitely doomed!_

"Of course I am strong. I can fight off all of you, even on my bad day."

Alarm bells rang in Tsuna's mind and he snapped his head to Hibari and Mukuro, whose auras were thickening like mad.

Lambo paid no attention to them. Ryohei was shaking with excitement from the prospect of having a new opponent to face, his hair shadowing his sunny eyes. Tsuna knew that if they waited a moment longer, he was going to burst and blind everyone in sight.

Gokudera was offended for Tsuna's honour, since he was just told that this old man could defeat his Boss. Okay, fine. The old man was Giotto's master—but he was old. The teens already knew that they can use that to their advantage.

Giotto's Hyper Intuition as well as his logic was telling him that trouble would arise if they continued talking to Kovato.

He turned to Lampo and stared him in the eyes. It was time for some pay looked back with uncertain ones, wondering what his boss wanted. The blond tilted his head towards the kitchen.

Then his eyes went back to Kovato, to Lampo, and to the kitchens. He conveyed everything through his orange eyes and Lampo's eyes widened when he understood fully. He shook his head ten times in quick succession in a heartbeat, refusing to do what Giotto requested.

Giotto's eyebrows rose significantly and a smile played on his lips. Then his eyes turned into the serious ones he showed to people when they didn't want to do what he asked. This request has just turned into an order from Vongola Primo—not Giotto, his friend. Disobeying an order from the Boss was never a good idea, no matter who the boss was.

Lampo cowered behind G, who casually moved out of the way. Asari put a hand on Lampo's shoulder, comforting him, but not supporting him. Daemon smirked as Knuckle prayed for Lampo's safety and drew the cross on his chest.

Lampo groaned inwardly and closed an eye.

"Yare, yare. I can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered, and louder, "This is a bore. If you're looking for me, I'll be in the kitchens. Ciao!" He turned and walked away. G smacked the back of his green head playfully with a smirk on his own face.

"Oh no you don't," Kovato said coldly. He turned away from the tenth generation family.

In that second, chaos reigned. Tsuna and Yamamoto jumped on Gokudera and Ryohei to stop them from shouting or declaring a boxing challenge to Kovato. This proved to be hard work.

Chrome quickly and quietly pleaded with Mukuro to not go after Kovato. With the paper thin bond she made with Hibari, she tried to convince both of them to wait until later. Hibari glared at her and took out his tonfas.

Mukuro glared at Hibari for glaring at Chrome and made his trident appear. Lambo backed away from the group and yawned. Reborn took out his gun and Tsuna hiie'd inwardly. He made wild gestures and jumped from Gokudera and Ryohei to Mukuro and Hibari and went all over, trying to keep his Guardians in check.

"Hm?" Kovato turned back to face the teens.

All of them instantly went back to their original spots as if nothing happened. Gokudera was whistling and looking into the sky as if observing the stars—there were no stars yet. Ryohei was holding a "polite conversation" with Lambo, with the latter not understanding a single word since everything was in boxing vocabulary. Mukuro was talking to Chrome and Hibari petted Hibird who landed on his arm.

Tsuna and Yamamoto were with Gokudera, "talking" and looking up.

Kovato narrowed his eyes and remembered the Lighting Guardian that was leaving.

"Lampo! You're not even a man. I should call you a child. Grown men don't go sauntering off after food. Get your behind back here!" When Lampo was a few metres away from the group, he broke into an all-out run, making a beeline for the servant's entrance. The moment Kovato's back was turned and out of earshot…

"I can't believe that old man had the nerve to insult Juudaime like that!"

"Maa, maa, Gokudera! He didn't mean Tsuna himself! He was talking…to all of…us…" Yamamoto's cheery grin turned into a frown, not really liking how he was also put down, now that he mentioned it.

"Kufufufu. I say we kill him." The first generation glared at him, excluding Daemon.

"M-Mukuro-sama…"

"Hie! Mukuro, you can't just go and kill him! He's Primo's master!"

"Oya? I'm not going to _just go and kill him,_ there's obviously a plan."

"_EXTREEEEEEEEEEEEEEME! _I need to challenge him to a boxing tournament!"

"Onii-san…" Tsuna sweatdropped.

"Dame-Tsuna, control your Guardians with your dying will."

"_HIIIIIIIIIIIEE!_ Reborn! Not at a time like this!"

"If you won't do it yourself I'll have to do the honours of helping you with it." Reborn's onyx eyes held no emotion as he said this. Giotto smiled slightly at the familiar scene he had gotten used to after the tenth generation began to live with them.

"Giotto, I can't believe you actually had it in you to sacrifice your Lightning Guardian, nufufufufu…" Giotto frowned.

"I didn't sacrifice him. Master won't find him at all. I made sure of that."

G cocked his head to look at Giotto from an angle.

"What did you do this time?"

"I thought that something like this might happen, so I activated the trap just inside the servant's entrance. No servants will be there now since they'll be too busy preparing. Lampo should be caught in it right about now."

"P-Primo! You trapped your own Guardian?" Tsuna cried in disbelief.

"The flooring right beneath his feet disappears, Decimo. He'll fall a couple of feet and the floor will rise back to its original position. Master won't even know it's there because the trap can only be activated once."

"O-Oh…"

Reborn kicked Tsuna_ hard_ in the middle and got him flying a few metres in the air and coming back down with a sickening _crack!_

"You should feel ashamed of yourself, Tsuna!" Leon turned into an electrocuting device and he used it on Tsuna with medium-high voltage.

"R-Reborn-san!" Gokudera protested.

"Silence."

"_G-G-G-a-a-a-a-a-a-h-h-h-h!"_ Tsuna screamed and the first generation moved away from the unknown object. Even Daemon was shaken by the damage done. Tsuna's suit was reduced to ciders.

"I-I-It's alright…Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna's quiet voice said. _I think I deserved that. I can't believe I was about to give Giotto a royal lecture about abusing his Guardians like that…_

"Here's your actual suit, Dame-Tsuna," Reborn said coldly. "Go change before the guests arrive. As for the rest of you…" Gokudera and the other Guardians gulped. "Don't stand there gawking like idiots and get in. You're going to block the entrance for everyone else if you stay there."

"Hai, Reborn-san!"

"Yare…"

"Kufufu. Do you really think you can order me around?"

"I don't listen to anyone."

"Maa, maa…"

"You will all go or else you'll be seeing me after dinner in the training room."

_There's no training room here!_ They all thought.

Reborn smirked. "I'll make one."

They ran.

"Geez, Reborn just _had_ to go and tear up that suit. It must have cost a fortune!" Tsuna was walking back to his guest room on the fourth floor. He shook out the new one and recognised the texture as the ones he received before, during all those times when he had to fight. This one was made from Leon, which made it flame resistible. His annoyance disappeared and his eyes went soft.

Without another word, he got dressed in his new outfit and went to meet his family. He opened his door and walked down the corridor. He bumped into Margaret.

"Oh! Young Master Tsunayoshi...I mean, Yoshi… You're back." She was holding onto a cloth used to dust the tables around the hallways.

Tsuna smiled. "Yes. I'm back. Um…could you explain why everyone is calling me Yoshi?" He tilted his head and she nodded quickly.

"Yes. It's because Primo thought that it would be harder for people to pronounce your name because they are unfamiliar with the language. He figured that Yoshi would be easier."

Tsuna sweatdropped.

"I-Is there anything you need…young master…?"

"No...not really...

"Very well then."

She bowed slightly and continued doing a last minute clean up and he to the main floor.

"Juudiame, are you alright!"

"Kufufu. Hayato, you better stop calling Tsunayoshi that if you don't want our cover blown kufufu…"

"Shut up Mukuro!"

"I'm fine…" Tsuna's words were ignored under the loudness of the others.

"Gokudera, calling Tsuna Juudaime in this era is not allowed, as much as it is proper." They looked at Reborn. Gokudera became even more disappointed that he had to call Tsuna anything other than Juudaime.

"Alright, I understand, Reborn-san…Juudaime!"

"H-Hai?"

"Until we return to the present, I will call you Boss!"

"Eeek!"

"Sh!" Giotto hissed suddenly. All of them looked at him. "The first group is coming right now. Decimo, you and your Guardians can head to the banquet hall. Everyone will gather there before dinner."

"Oh…okay." He led the way into a set of double doors. Mukuro and Hibari only followed because they had no excuses for not going. Again, it was Reborn who issued the order.

While walking away, Tsuna noticed with surprise that Chrome's outfit was different than before. It was still an indigo dress, but he noticed with plenty of blushing, that they, meaning someone, did something to it. They did something to her waist to make it thinner; it must be a corset. Chrome didn't seem to like it at all with the look on her face. It looked as if she was going to take it off as soon as the party was busy enough to not notice her slip away.

On her head were beautiful beads beaded into her purple hair, which was let down. "C-Chrome...your hair..." Tsuna breathed out.

She touched the tips and blushed. She never had her hair down in front of them, she realised. This would be the first time they, other than Mukuro, have seen her with it down. In one hand she held a fan which was forced on her by the maids. Her trident was collapsed and put into one of the hidden folds she found in her dress without them knowing.

"D-Dokuro...why are you...dressed like that?" Gokudera muttered and looked away awkwardly.

"The maids saw how I looked and insisted on making me look proper..." They were now at the doors. "They would have made me change this dress for one with many layers, but I...refused them. They just...added more frills to it."

Gokuder remembered that the maids in his mansion were so picky of the clothing he wore that he couldn't fight them off. For Chrome to have gotten her way with them...wow.

Giotto watched the retreating figures of their descendants and turned back to the entrance. He looked around him. G was at his right with Asari beside him. Next to him was Lampo. This surprised Giotto, since he was sure that there was no way he can free himself from the trap without the help of Alaude. He looked across from him and saw his Cloud Guardian watching him.

_So he came back in time..._ He turned his gaze to the two beside him: Daemon and Knuckle. They were all present and accounted for.

"Giotto! It's been too long!" A boss greeted him with his hand outstretched for a handshake.

Giotto flashed the man his own smile. "Yes, it's good to see you again. I'm glad that you could make it."

The boss grinned. "Lucky us, eh? I would have come tomorrow evening, but I had a meeting in Palermo this morning, as it is, so hell. I may as well come a day early!" the two of them laughed.

Out of the corner of his right eye, he could see that his other Guardians were greeting the on-coming surge of famiglia members. Only G, as his right hand man, stayed beside him.

Having his other Guardians greet the other bosses didn't save Giotto any breath, because they insisted on at least saying hello to Giotto. The only good thing of having his Guardians greet the guests before they proceed to Giotto was that it slowed down the process; the bosses who wanted to greet Primo couldn't just bypass the Guardians because it would seem offensive.

Other than that, there was another reason why the Guardians won't let them near Giotto before seeing them. They were, if you must be reminded, Guardians of the Sky.

They searched for evil intents on the people, as well as trying to spot any weapons that they may have carelessly left revealed. It was one of the security measures anyone would use. But, it never really works because weapons were still being smuggled in. The only thing he could hope for was that there would be no reason for a shootout to happen. Being in the mafia meant that everyone had at least a gun on them, so they couldn't confiscate everything in such a large gathering.

But they _did_ politely ask them to remove all weapons except for their own eating utensils if they brought any. Extra ammunition was not allowed. If they didn't, Alaude was there to convince to them.

"Vongola Primo, it's a pleasure to meet you again," a woman who had an air of command around her said. Men turned and moved away slightly.

"Hey…" someone whispered to his companion, "isn't that…the Boss whose family has the power of divination? That witch craft?"

"Sh! Don't let them hear you, idiot."

A beautiful young woman about twenty years old with black hair tied in a bun and a flower tattoo under an eye stood there. She wore white for the occasion. It had a few orange stripes running down the left side and the dress was as light as society permitted. The upper class women usually wore many layers of skirts, which made it heavy.

The Gigilio Nero Boss obviously didn't like the fact that a heavy dress will deny her access to most of the fighting skills she possessed. The dress had long sleeves. He noticed the faint ridges of empty sheaths on them, which was where she must have had weapons hidden.

None of his guardians would have been impolite enough to...ahem. Actually search her, so she had removed them willingly. There were also folds in her dress, suggesting more hidden weapons. Again, those have been removed. But he knew that she can be just as dangerous without them. Like him.

He smiled and bowed, taking her hand to brush his lips against the fingertips before releasing her. He nodded to her right hand man, who had blond hair slicked back. He bowed slightly in return. "Sepira, you look stunning tonight."

She smiled at the flattery. "You're rather handsome, as always."

Giotto sent her another polite smile. Their fingers brushed against one another's rings before they separated. She excused herself and moved on with her right hand man.

He welcomed the next hundred people into the mansion and directed them to the hall. The females who tagged along were the daughters of bosses, with the wives trying to match make their daughter to him. Giotto kept his cool through this and together with the rest of his Guardians, went in.

He saw that many people were looking at Tsuna and his Guardians with curious glances and he sighed.

"Time for introductions," he murmured to his own Guardians. They nodded, laughed, or snorted. He made eye contact with Tsuna, who to Giotto's surprise understood what he wanted. Maybe it was Hyper Intuition, or maybe Giotto was just that easy to read. He believed it was the former because he knew that unless someone was his friend, he was pretty hard to read.

Together, with the first generation family leading the way and the tenth just a step behind, they walked up the stairs to the balcony which looked down into the crowd. As they climbed the steps, the crowd's talking turned into whispers. When Giotto stopped at the railing, absolute silence swept through the room. His other Guardians took their respectful spots by their boss, and Tsuna's Guardians were beside their "cousin."

"To all Bosses and friends who have come to my humble mansion." —the mansion was not at all humble—"I welcome you! Thank you for coming to Vongola's _(nth) _Anniversary of the alliance!"

Cheers and clapping erupted for a three full minutes as people whistled and hooted, very unusually for people wearing very official suits but pretty normal for Mafiosi. Giotto continued giving his speech about the Vongola's growth, their success, and all the other matters he prepared to talk about beforehand. At the very end, he remembered the tenth generation.

"And, for my final announcement." The crowd which was just about to continue talking grew quieted. "Decimo, Guardians, please step forward," he whispered. Reborn, who was concealed in who knows where, smirked. Tsuna and his Guardians stepped forward. Tsuna held in a breath at the sight of the massive, intimidating crowd.

Giotto looked into the crowd, into the eyes of all the bosses present. He put a hand on Tsuna's shoulder.

"This is Yoshi Sawada, my _dear _cousin from Japan. He comes here with his friends, my Guardians' cousins, for this special occasion. I trust that none of you will try anything as rash as taking Yoshi, or his friends, off to play a few rounds of Russian Roulette."

Some chuckled as some looked away nervously. Tsuna looked at his ancestor. _Okay, this is scary…did he just warn them not to "touch us and die a painful death" in a cheerful way?_

"Say a few words," Giotto whispered to Tsuna softly.

"You're joking, right?" Tsuna asked anxiously.

"Just say hi, and you can go. They'll expect that much from you, or else they won't stop pestering you and your Guardians," Giotto said and gave Tsuna little push.

_Who knew he could be so…pushy? _Tsuna wailed in his head. _I wish we can get this over with!_ He swallowed once and forced a smile to his lips.

"U-Um…Hello, everyone, I hope that you will uh—enjoy yourselves!" Right when he finished talking and moved back, the crowd roared and he flinched.

"What made that happen?" he shrieked.

"Boss! You're the best! That's why!"

"EXTREME!"

"Young Vongola, are there any snacks?"

"No…I don't think so…" Tsuna looked at Giotto for confirmation.

"Good job, Decimo. There are light refreshments. I wouldn't advise you to eat them, with dinner coming soon."

Lambo slumped and obeyed; more intimidated by the fact that Vongola Primo was talking to him than anything else. They all went down the stairs. Onido greeted them and stared at the cousins.

"How come _I_ wasn't told that you had cousins, Giotto? I feel so betrayed."

"I didn't think it was that important. Sorry." He patted his friend on the shoulder.

Onido didn't seem to mind, since what he said was a joke. "Ciao! I'm Onido, Primo of the Cavallone family."

"Cavallone?" Tsuna, Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Ryohei repeated in surprise.

Onido blinked at them. "Er, yes. Is there a problem?"

"No, no, no problem at all!" The brunet hastened to assure him.

"I can't believe that stupid Bucking Horses'—" The rest of Gokudera's sentence was drowned by Yamamoto's laugh and Ryohei's exclamation.

"That's EXTREME! You're related to Dino, huh!"

"So do you use a whip too?"

"Oh—I—uh, no?" The teens left the man startled and lost for words.

Kovato watched the exchange silently. _Something seems off._

"Here comes the boss of the Gigilio Nero Famiglia," G whispered into Giotto's ear as he watched the woman and the man approach them.

"Eh? Gigilio?" Tsuna spun around to see the boss of the Gigilio Family of this time. She was breath taking. He wondered if she had the power to see into the future, and if she did, how far? She looked at the tenth generation family and gave them a knowing smile.

With that smile, they realised that she already knew what was going on. Tsuna tried his best not to stare at her as he thought of how she was part of the ancient race of Earth, long before humans evolved.

She greeted them, and they in return, greeted her. Their talk was innocent enough for a bystander to ignore. Before she left them, she addressed Tsuna's family.

"Sawada and friends," their attention returned to her. She nodded her head at them. "I would like to thank you in advance for your help with my family." Giotto, G, and Onido had no idea of what they were talking about.

Tsuna sweated bullets. "A-Ah! I-It's fine! Fine!" She smiled at them again and left to enjoy conversing with other people until it was time for the banquet.

"What was she talking about? Giotto? G?"

The two Vongolas shook their heads at Onido. "How the hell am I supposed to know?"

"Language, G."

"Hmph."

Giotto turned to Tsuna. "Yoshi?"

"I-It was nothing," he muttered under his breath so only Giotto could hear. "Just…you know…future stuff."

Music played as they wandered around on orders by Reborn.

"But Re_born!_ Do I _have_ to?"

"Shut up, Tsuna. You'll do as I say..." He had no need to finish his sentence since his student seemed to have gotten the underlying message.

"Same goes to you two, Mukuro, Hibari," Reborn raised his fedora to look at them properly.

Yamamoto and Gokudera stayed by Tsuna. Ryohei and Lambo wandered off to another direction, while Hibari glared at whoever was thoughtless enough to approach him. Chrome didn't know where or what she should be doing, so she decided to follow Mukuro.

Males and females approached the pair cautiously, remembering Giotto's warning and didn't want to offend them in any way, but at the same time, wanted to be on their good list so they might be able to put in a good word about them to Giotto.

"Are the two of you siblings?" A young woman asked. She was dressed in a bright yellow evening dress and was fanning herself with a matching yellow fan.

"Kufufu. Touch her and I will kill you."

End of discussion.

"Good evening, young master Sawada."

"Good evening! How are you?" Tsuna also saw behind this man that someone—Polario, had walked up to Giotto, whispering something. His attention went back to the man before him.

* * *

><p>With Giotto, G noticed Polario walking up to them as calm as he could. He nudged his friend slightly. Giotto was currently keeping an eye out for the ladies, since they might pounce at the most unreasonable times.<p>

"Hm?"

"Polario's coming near. What do you think happened?"

"Someone's probably trying to crash the party."

"How would you know?"

Giotto gave him a look that asked if he really needed to ask.

"Primo, a group is trying to get in." Polario bowed slightly, as a butler should.

"Thank you, Polario. Do you know who it is?" Giotto gave G a victorious look. G rolled his eyes in reply and made sure none of the families could see their conversation.

Polario nodded and whispered in Giotto's left ear. Giotto sighed when he heard the name.

"What are we going to do with them, G?"

"You tell me."

"How long can the guards hold them off for?"

"The guards almost had all of them in shackles by the time I left. But there might be more of them outside, waiting to see what you will do."

Giotto nodded thoughtfully.

* * *

><p>The man chuckled. "Oh, I'm doing fine today. Is that one of your friends over there?" He gestured to Mukuro. Tsuna's head felt like it was being compressed and buzzing sounded. His Hyper Intuition pulsed slightly. He had the urge to clutch it painfully but he didn't.<p>

"Yes…he is one of my friends."

"Mm. He looks special. Who is that young lady beside him?" Tsuna's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Excuse us," Gokudera said seriously, sensing Tsuna's uneasiness. "But have we been formally introduced?"

_Nice job, Gokudera! That didn't sound too impolite!_ Tsuna was relieved that he didn't have to be the one who demanded who the man was.

"My apologies. I am the Estraneo Boss. I was just curious about your friend there. He looks like he could be helpful to my experiment. It hasn't been completed yet, and we need people like him to make it a success."

Tsuna's protective aura thickened and snapped taught as though it was a shield. His teeth gritted as he withheld a stammer.

"I'm sorry, Master Estraneo, but I'm afraid that he doesn't have the time for...your experiment. We will move on with our travels after the party, so we can't stay long."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear so…"

* * *

><p>"I'll have to deal with them after the ball is over. Can't have the guests wondering where I went off to in the middle of eating. Put more guards on watch. That's all I can say for now. Give them my thanks and good luck."<p>

"Very well, Giotto." Polario left them.

It was then that the master cook announced that dinner was ready to be served. Giotto and his guardians led the way to the banquet hall, where servants lined up to wait on them.

"Please make your way to your assigned seats!" Giotto called loud enough for the crowd to hear. All of them were already given a piece of paper of where their family would be sitting in the hall. The food was served in an orderly fashion, all of the waiters and waitresses coming out at the same time and putting the food down in sync of each other. This showed that no family was served first. Giotto sighed with relief when nothing bad happened. Yet.

The seating arrangement was quite simple. The Vongola Family's table sat in the middle, with other tables on either side, evenly spaced. The Families which have been in the alliance for a shorter time sat closest to the Vongola. The older ones sat further was in part to make the new families feel welcome. The old ones, having sat in their position before, now occupied seats further away, showing old powers in the outer shell and young, new power closer to the centre.

Giotto made sure that there were no hard feelings throughout the meal by standing up between the times the meals were taken away and the next course was being prepared. He would walk to the other tables and greet each of them just as cheerful as the last.

Three people were allowed from each family. This usually meant the boss, the boss's partner, and a third person. Some preferred a personal guard, while some brought another family member who needed to be ready for parties, and so was brought to them. This was usually a child of the family. Giotto sat at the head of his table, his Guardians on one side, and Tsuna's on the other. Tsuna's family sat on the left side. Reborn, somehow limited his hitman aura, sat down beside Tsuna.

Alaude and Hibari sat furthest from the group although Hibari seemed to have made an extra effort. Alaude was used to such gatherings and had no problems with crowds. He sat with Knuckle, who was busy talking to him or Daemon, who was on the other side. Alaude had long suspected that Giotto put Knuckle in between them so they won't fight with each other. He snorted at the thought. He wasn't immature enough to pick a fight in the middle of a public gathering.

Tsuna looked at his food and let out a breath.

"Tsuna."

"Eh—H-Hai, Reborn?" Tsuna asked quietly and made sure he wasn't breaking any…eating rules.

"What's bothering you?"

"Wh-What do you mean, Reborn? Ahaha…"

Giotto continued to talk to G, although both of them were listening to the conversation. Reborn was aware of that, but maybe Tsuna won't look so uncomfortable if he thought that only Reborn was listening.

"My to-do list for your training is growing by the second, Dame-Tsuna."

"Hiiiee…we-well…the…Estraneo Family…"His voice turned into a low whisper, almost just a breath in the air.

Reborn smirked. "Don't tell me you're worried about Mukuro."

"H-He _did_ belong to that family," Tsuna whispered, not wanting the illusionist to overhear even though he was five seats away. "A-And the boss asked about him…wanted to use Mukuro for his…_experiment."_ The last part was so quiet it might as well have been mouthed. He pushed his food around his plate with a fork.

"Don't do that to your food. Eat it."

"I'm not hungry."

"Eat it or people will wonder why you're not."

"So?" Tsuna said grumpily. "There's so much tension in the air I can't even swallow it." Giotto's knife scraped the plate, accidentally making a short screech.

Tsuna and Reborn looked at him. G continued eating, although he rubbed his left ear. Giotto gave them a sheepish smile.

* * *

><p><strong><em>-LLM<br>_**

**_Edited 2015-03-18th_**


	13. Extreme Multitasking

**Chapter Thirteen**

Halfway through the dessert, Chrome silently got up and left. Seems like she couldn't continue wearing the annoying...article of clothing anymore. With the corset practically killing her, she couldn't keep the food down. Tsuna suddenly stopped his eating and looked towards Chrome's retreating figure along with Mukuro who also sensed something was off. She was moving to the stairs that lead to the family's private quarters.

"Boss?" Gokudera still had the piece of meat stabbed on his fork, half way to his mouth. Tsuna's frown deepened. Ever since the beginning of the meal, his Hyper Intuition had been acting up. Something unnerved him _now,_ when Chrome was going off. Alone. He gasped.

"Chrome!"

Mukuro already disappeared from his seat. His head with wild brown hair swivelled around. He didn't feel Mukuro's presence anymore.

He panicked inside as Reborn pulled him back down by an ear. Good thing his sudden outburst didn't attract any attention. "What are you doing, Tsuna?"

"What do you think? I need to see what's going on!"

"Mukuro will handle it. Finish your dessert." Tsuna opened his mouth to complain but Reborn's hard stare stopped him from doing so. He dropped his gaze to his plate. Giotto watched them with concern. The Lestre Famiglia should already be subdued by the guards. But he too, still had trouble convincing his Hyper Intuition the same thing.

After the food part of the night was over, the guests returned to their assigned bedrooms. The ball was officially tomorrow night, so there was no partying today. When all the guests were in their rooms, Alaude and Giotto went to check on the guards and their prisoners.

"We have to talk about your findings tomorrow morning," Giotto stifled a yawn while Alaude just snorted. He already had his fair share of winks on the trip home.

"You better be awake by then. If not, you can forget about it."

"Wha—Alaude, you can't do that…"

"Watch me."

"…But the last time that happened, I was sick, signing the papers _you_ put to my desk."

Alaude ignored that and continued on. When they reached the basement, they went through another door which leads to a deeper level, where they had prisoners. Giotto's mood dropped with each step he took. He hated it down here. Not the bit of sunshine at all. In this tunnel there were jails built into the wall for temporary cases. They kept no permanent criminals in here. There were ten on each side also Giotto never understood why they needed so _many_ of them in the first place. Now he knew.

"What…what is this?"

"Boss!" Two guards standing on either side saluted and stood at attention. Giotto nodded at them numbly.

"Good evening."

"These are the invaders we caught this evening, Boss!"

Giotto was afraid to ask, but he knew he had to. "How many are there?"

"There are sixty of them here. Some managed to get away and we have a few men chasing after them."

"Call them back," Giotto said quietly. "We need to settle this. We can't have them crashing on our doorstep every day or two. Alaude?" He turned to find that Alaude was already unlocking the first jail cell. Three men stumbled out and tried to make a desperate run for it. All were caught in Alaude's handcuffs and dragged away. Giotto stared at the rest of them.

"What did you find on them?"

"Boss, we found hand guns, knives, bombs, hand grenades, shot guns, rifles, swords, and gun powder." Giotto's eyes narrowed at each threat towards his family. What did he ever do to the Lestre Famiglia to make them go to such extreme means to wipe them out? And didn't they know that the Vongola Famiglia was too powerful for them _to_ wipe out?

Alaude came back and opened another cell. He took out a single prisoner and shut the remaining two back inside. Giotto knew that he could leave Alaude to the questioning because that's what he does best. Maybe someone else should help him.

"Alaude—?"

"I don't need help. Just get out."

* * *

><p>Tsuna was sitting on his bed feeling anxious. Chrome and Mukuro didn't return to the dining table. It was half an hour after the guests returned to their room and neither Guardian were back yet. Despite Reborn's warning to stay in bed, he took off the jacket and loosened the blasted shirt so it wasn't choking him. He made sure his rings were in place with his mittens in a pocket before heading out.<p>

_Click._ He shut his door as quietly as possible.

"Boss," Gokudera whispered. Tsuna jumped two feet in the air and spun around, eyes as wide as tennis balls in freight. He calmed when it was just Gokudera and Yamamoto.

"Oh…it's just you two."

"I'm sorry for scaring you, Juudaime!" Gokudera whispered loudly and attempts to kneel on the ground and bang his head to it. Tsuna and Yamamoto stopped him before his knees hit the floor.

"Gokudera-kun! We don't have time for this!"

"But Boss…"

"Maa, we have to see what happened to Mukuro and Chrome, right?" Yamamoto whispered in turn. Tsuna nodded. Somehow, he knew that his friends would know what he was thinking, and join him.

"I'll make it up to you by finding that girl!" Gokudera promised.

"Y-Yeah…" Tsuna sweat-dropped. "Let's go then!"

Tsuna was, he didn't really remember how, put in the lead. His two friends walked on either side of him.

"Where do you think she'll be?"

"Don't worry yourself over that, baseball nut. Ju—Boss has a plan, right?" He looked expectantly at Tsuna was gave him a nervous smile.

"Eto…I guess we can just start by looking for Mukuro?" Gokudera instantly approved and Yamamoto laughed, going along with it. All too soon, they reached the point where they had to decide to either go up or down.

"W-Which do you suppose?" Tsuna asked his friends.

"Up!"

"Down, daseball freak! Why the hell would they go up? It's too risky with Primo's family there. It's better to go down."

Already they were assuming that Chrome was kidnapped.

They reached the second floor and Tsuna's hand froze on the rail.

"Boss, what's wrong?"

"Tsuna?"

_This feels like Mukuro…whenever he's around, I get that feeling. _"Mukuro's near."

"What?" They said in surprise and looked around.

"Kufufu." The soft chuckle sent chills up their backs. Tsuna stared at the bottom of the stair case. He groaned quietly.

"Mukuro, show yourself!" Gokudera hissed. Mist appeared and Mukuro came out of it. He had an angry frown on his face.

"D-Did something happen?" Tsuna asked carefully. He was trying to be careful to not aggravate him any further.

"Did you find her?" Yamamoto asked. They descended the stairs.

"No."

Tsuna became very worried at this point. _Mukuro_ of all people couldn't find Chrome? Who took her? Or hid her?

Mukuro noticed Tsuna's worry filled eyes and smirked. "Kufufufu. I'll find Nagi. This mansion isn't so big that a lone girl can hide in it."

_How wrong you are about that…_ Tsuna sweat-dropped. "We can help look," he offered.

"I don't need your help."

"I'll help anyways," Tsuna said confidently. Mukuro held his gaze for a minute. Tsuna was surprised that he wasn't running away. Maybe he was getting used to Mukuro's stares.

"Do as you like. I'm searching the basement." His voice became a whisper as he disappeared.

"We'll look outside. Mukuro's probably looked wherever Chrome might be on the inside…"

"Hai!" Gokudera said enthusiastically. Yamamoto simply grinned and tapped his bamboo sword against his shoulder as if massaging himself.

"Young master Yoshi, is there anything you need help with?" The guard on watch recognised them. Tsuna smiled politely.

"Have you seen Chrome? The girl who came with us? Purple hair, purple dress?"

"No, I'm sorry. I haven't seen her since your return."

"That's fine. Do you mind if we look outside for her?"

The guard seemed to frown from the tone of his voice and how he shifted his feet. "Are you sure? It's the middle of the night, after all. We can help look for her. It's no safe for children to go out at this time."

"Who are you calling a child?" Gokudera snapped. His hands were in his pockets and his emerald green eyes glared at the guard. "We can look after ourselves. We say we're going so we're going! Nothing you say can stop us!"

"Y-Yes…Very well…just give a shout if you need anything…"

"Tch!"

Tsuna smiled at the guard. "Sorry…and thanks." He hurried by and went through the woods. Yamamoto took a lantern that was on the wall and caught up to his friends.

_Smart thinking, Yamamoto! I won't want to be caught dead in there without a light…_ Tsuna was suddenly reminded of the games Reborn used to make them play…in the graveyards…those floating objects gave him the creeps. It wasn't until weeks later that Reborn told him that Fuuta was the one who made the objects rise into the air.

"I wonder where she could be…" Tsuna murmured. His Hyper Intuition wasn't telling him where to go yet—his eyes widened and a hand went to his head confusingly.

"Tsuna?" Yamamoto bent down to look at his friend with concern written all over his face.

"Juudaime! Is something the matter? Juudaime! Talk to me!"

"H-Huh?" He blinked and looked first at Yamamoto, then at Gokudera.

"What happened?"

"Just now…" _Just now my head hurt like hell…then it stopped hurting._ He looked at his friends again. "Nothing. Don't worry about it." He looked into the distance and frowned.

For once, Gokudera and Yamamoto looked at each other without a word being shared between them. Both knew what Tsuna just experienced was not "nothing" and that he was trying to hide something from them, probably to keep them from worrying.

"J—Boss, What happened? You can tell us!"

He sighed. _Seems like I can't hide anything from them._

"I don't know, actually. Since Chrome went missing, I've been having this bad feeling. Suddenly, it got stronger. Then it stopped."

"It...stopped? What does that mean?"Yamamoto frowned in confusion.

"Boss, perhaps it means that the danger is over?" Tsuna still had a worried face.

"I hope so. But to _who_ is the danger over for? Chrome? Attacker?" His face paled as he thought of what would happen if Chrome was in danger. He sprinted off in a random direction.

"Tsuna! Where are you going?"

He didn't know. He just had this urge to move forwards.

"Wait for me, Boss!"

They ran for a few minutes and something caught their attention. Fighting. His two friends didn't need Tsuna to explain what was happening. They burst through the clearing and into action.

Three large men were the first thing they saw. As Yamamoto and Gokudera grabbed hold of two that Chrome was fighting against, Tsuna saw that the third one was on the ground with scratches on his cheek in three parallel lines. A trident? He turned the other way, near the fighting.

Chrome was huddling against a tree. A bit of her dress was torn at the bottom and the beads had fallen out of her hair. The fan was nowhere to be seen, replaced by her trident.

The third one groaned and tried to get up. Tsuna's eyes widened when he saw a revolver pointed at his friends. He ran at the man and kicked the gun out of his hand, far away from all of them.

_Hiiiee! What am I doing! _

"Why you…!" The man grunted and got himself up. He was two heads taller than the five feet six inches of height Tsuna had.

"EEEP!" He jumped back as the man tried to grab him. Tsuna ducked. Training with Reborn and Ryohei kicked in. He gave the man a punch in the gut. He knew that he couldn't continue fighting like this since he wasn't used to it yet. Tsuna went into Hyper Mode.

The man paused when he saw something different with the boy. His eyes were orange…hm. Oh well. He blinked once and the boy was gone. Then he felt an arm hit his back. He stumbled forwards and shook himself.

"Tsuna! Watch out!" Tsuna ducked the oncoming blow without looking. It was one of the thugs had slipped from Yamamoto and Gokudera's grasp. The moment Tsuna turned around, the third man went for him.

He froze and groaned again. After Tsuna pushed the second man away, he turned around and saw the third man behind him, not moving. Then he slowly fell to his feet. Tsuna quickly held him and lowered him to the ground gently. Looking up he saw Mukuro.

"Mukuro…"

"Kufufu! Never turn your back to the enemy—didn't anyone teach you that?"

"You have guts to attack us!" Gokudera said and pounded the first man.

"Maa, Gokudera, he's already unconscious. No need to beat him up like that," Yamamoto said although he didn't try to stop him. Tsuna reverted back to his old self and hit his palm to his forehead.

"Em…what are we going to do with them?"

"Why don't we bring them to Alaude?" Yamamoto suggested. They stared at him.

"What did you just say?"

"Well…" Yamamoto scratched his head. "He's the head of security, right? So, if we find people wandering around…we should bring them to him?"

"That's the first reasonable answer I've heard from you, baseball freak."

"Hahah!"

"But where is he?" Tsuna rubbed his temples. Now that everything was over, he was getting tired.

"We'll have to look for him."

Tsuna looked at Chrome. "Chrome, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said shakily.

"What happened, Nagi?"

"After the meal, I was planning to change. But then they came up behind me and covered my face with a cloth. The next thing I knew, I was here, and they were arguing. Something about making me tell them the best way to infiltrate into the mansion, since I was Boss' friend and a cousin to the first generation." Mukuro growled. Gokudera snorted.

"I was tied up, but I got free. They noticed and tried to tie me down again, but…" She took a deep breath. "I accidentally scratched one of them. The other two got mad and," she waved at her dress. "I-I cast illusions and beasts…that made them stay away for a while, but one of them got close enough to hurt me, and I got distracted. I fought them off for a while until you came."

Gokudera held the legs of one of them and began dragging him.

"Let's get these bastards to Alaude then!"

* * *

><p>The next morning, Giotto got up early and walked to his office with a cup of tea in his hand. Alaude was also heading to Giotto's office from the opposite direction.<p>

Giotto nodded at him. "Good morning, Alaude."

He got no reply. Giotto shrugged inwardly since he was already used to this and opened the door for them both. Alaude shut it and Giotto sat at his desk. Alaude handed Giotto the file, which he flipped through as he listened to Alaude report.

"Nothing is going on at the moment, but your cousin seems to be gathering his friends for something."

"I didn't even send him an invitation…no wait. I did."

"He is also coming to the party today. He was preparing to leave a day after my departure."

"Hm…what about Tomaso?"

"He is doing alright; with my help, they are well on their way to becoming a family." Giotto looked up at Alaude and saw what he wanted to ask.

"My Hyper Intuition is saying something will happen tonight. It was acting up yesterday, so it's most likely just the little thing about the Lestre Famiglia, not Ricardo. And it wasn't be anything big; just a warning." Giotto mused. Usually when something extremely dangerous happened, he would get headaches. Now, what he was feeling were just…feelings.

"I'm putting extra guards on duty tonight."

"You can't do that…"

"Why not?"

"I promised that…we won't make the shifts that don't have to work…_work,_ since we're having a ball and they should also relax.

Alaude's eyebrow twitched. "You're going of be the death of me. Put them back on."

"I promised!"

Alaude growled. "You and your promises."

"You can always get Tsuna and his Guardians to help you. They will be worth at least twenty guards, give or take." Their heads snapped to the couch in the room. Reborn was lounging on it, drinking his espresso.

"Re…born?"

How did they not notice him? Alaude's eyes narrowed. Giotto quickly reassured him that there was nothing wrong, and told him what the man was doing for Giotto at the moment. Alaude put his handcuffs away and continued to stare at Reborn. How could he, Alaude, not know there was another person in the room? Was he that skilled of a hitman?

"Forget that—what do you mean by having Decimo and his Guardians assist us? They are just children."

"They'll do fine."

Meanwhile, Alaude was standing there saying nothing. Giotto sighed after being unable to convince Reborn otherwise. "Alaude, you tell him. We can't have children fighting for us."

Alaude turned to face his distressed boss. "I don't care as long as I don't have to clean up after them."

"Alaude, that's unreasonable!"

Alaude stared. "Five of them came to me last night."

"What?"

"They came with three Lestre Famiglia men unconscious."

"Are they all okay? Were they hurt?" Giotto frowned with worry.

Alaude snorted. "The three are put under arrest for harassment, attempted kidnapping, and trespassing."

Giotto didn't get a chance to comment. Then they all heard a scream and a thud of someone hitting the trees below. Giotto got up and looked out the window. Looking down, he saw nothing.

"What was that?"

"That is my dear student and his Guardians learning a lesson to never disobey me," Reborn said casually, almost offhandedly. "The people they stopped last night didn't hurt them one bit, so I'm doing it for them."

"What…did you make them do?" Giotto asked curiously. Reborn smirked and Giotto paled. He looked out again, knowing what to look for…to the right of his window were Gokudera and Yamamoto. He saw some blue behind them.

"Boss! Are you alright!" They were looking down. Giotto stuck half his body out and saw his descendant on the grass, rubbing his back.

"I'm fine!"

"Hahaha! This is fun!"

"Kufufufufu. Move over, you two. If you're not moving, I'll push you off."

Giotto sweat-dropped.

_What are the families going to think when they see them climbing the walls, falling off, and climbing on again?_

"What if one of our guests sees them?" he asked. _  
><em>

"Oh, I made sure that they knew what would happen to them if they were caught," Reborn said ominously.

* * *

><p>That entire day, Tsuna and his guardians avoided the crowd. But in the afternoon, they could avoid it no further. More mafia families were coming in since the morning. There were so many people wandering around the mansion, they couldn't just hide in a corner.<p>

There were also the bosses that wanted to talk with them—most of all: the Estraneo kept bothering Tsuna. Maybe it was because most of his friends treated him as the leader, and he was Giotto's "cousin." He did his best to keep them away from Mukuro and Chrome. Who knew what Mukuro would do to the boss if they were put in the same room?

"Young masters," Margaret said when she found Tsuna, Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Ryohei lounging in the family's private living room, one of the only places they could relax in. "Giotto requests a meeting with you in his study right now."

"Okay…are Mukuro, Chrome, and Lambo also going?" Tsuna asked as they got up. She nodded.

"I wonder what Primo wants," Gokudera muttered.

"It must be an _extreme_ boxing match!"

"Hahah! That would be fun!"

_No…that doesn't sound right!_

As they sounded the corner, they could hear Lambo. "Why do we have to be called there now of all times? I was sleeping."

"Lambo!"

"Young Vongola, you're here too?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"Kufufu. Seems like we weren't the only ones called to Primo's office." Mukuro was a step behind Lambo. Chrome was beside him, wearing a gown which the maids made her wear. At least it wasn't as uncomfortable as the one last night.

"Where's…Hibari?" Tsuna was afraid to ask.

BOOM!

They froze and turned to the double doors.

"That damn prefect better not be responsible!" Gokudera growled.

"Come on!" Tsuna shouted and began to run. The rest followed. He put both hands on the door. He ignored the manners Reborn drilled into his head and opened it wide.

It was the messiest scene they must have seen in Primo's study since they appeared.

Giotto was _not_ at his desk. They didn't see him at the moment. His papers were scattered everywhere around the room. Some have been mercilessly trampled over while the rest were still flying around before landing on tables, couches, floor, and shelves.

Reborn's tall figure was leaning on the wall by the window. His fedora was covering his face and Leon was on his shoulder sticking his tongue out. With the fireplace banked, the room was colder than usual. Giotto was on a couch. There was a cup of tea on the table in front of him. His legs were crossed at the ankles and his head rested in his right hand which was leaning on the couch's arm. His eyes were closed in resignation.

Tsuna's attention was fixed on the two figures in the middle of the room and for a moment forgot where they were and thought, to his horror, that two Hibaris existed. Giotto cleared his throat.

"Alaude." Tsuna sighed and kicked himself for being an idiot. No, there were not two of them. If there were, the world won't live through a day without "peace."

"H-Hibari-san, what…what are you doing?"

Hibari glanced over at them and hn'd before turning his attention back to Alaude. He stood with both tonfa out while Alaude had no weapons; he simply stood there.

_I-I'm being ignored again…_

"Oi! Don't just ignore the Boss!"

"_EXTREME! Hibariii…FIGHT!"_

Tsuna cringed. "Onii-san, that's not helping!"

"Kufufufu. Always the trouble maker."

Chrome sweat-dropped and thought of all the things Mukuro had done that went under the category of "trouble."

Yamamoto laughed and calmed them all down. Tsuna didn't need actually Hibari to answer, since it was clear that Hibari had picked a fight with Alaude. But how did that explosion happen? This, he asked. In reply, Hibari mutely pointed to the side of the study. Seven pairs of eyes followed the tonfa.

There was a dusty hole in the right wall, the other side of the relaxing part of the study. Tsuna looked at his Guardian worriedly. He could see that Hibari's prefect jacket had crumbles from the wall. And the force of it was monstrous. He looked at Alaude, terrified. Then back at the hole.

"Hibari-san! Are you alright!"

"Herbivore…do not underestimate me."

Tsuna gulped. Okay, so Hibari wasn't hurt…but the wall sure was! "P-Primo! I'm very sorry! I'll make it up to you! I'm truly, very sorry!" Tsuna squeezed his eyes shut and bowed so that his back was entirely straight. He heard Giotto move to stand.

"Decimo, I'm sorry, but I can't allow your Cloud Guardian to continue on like how he is."

"Eh?" He lifted his head. Giotto's face was calm while his eyes showed apology and annoyance.

"Unless you can figure out a better way, I am locking him up."

_"EEEHHH!"_ Went everyone.

"Giotto!" Multiple footsteps thundered down the hallway. Tsuna's family moved out of the way to let them pass. G, Asari, Knuckle, Lampo, and Daemon came in. They took one look at the room and at the Cloud Guardians and all came to the same conclusion.

"P-Please…It…won't happen again…just don't…lock him up?" Tsuna almost bit his tongue in his nervousness with the entire first generation staring at him.

"Spoken like a true boss."

Heads turned to Reborn. "A boss cares for his subordinates," was his explanation.

"Reborn!" Tsuna complained.

"You _are_ the boss, Tsuna. There's no way you can deny that at this point in the game."

"Still playing the game, huh?" Yamamoto let out a cheery laugh.

Giotto sympathised with Tsuna. If someone told him that they had to lock up one of his Guardians, no matter what they did, he would still want them to be free. But as it happens, this was something that had to be done.

"The ultimate decision goes to Giotto," Knuckle said.

"WHAT!" Gokudera cried and then shut himself up for being so impolite. "Sorry…" Knuckle nodded approvingly and forgave him for his outburst. Good, strong, young healthy lungs were naturally loud.

"What makes you think that you can lock me up?" Hibari glowered at Giotto. Saying that Giotto took this calmly would be a lie. He was actually surprised and horrified that Hibari acted so much like his own Cloud Guardian. Good thing they don't agree with each other…otherwise, who knows what havoc can be caused if they became a team?

Giotto saw that all eyes were on him, waiting for an answer, although G was looking at Alaude from the corner of his eye.

"You're in my home, causing destruction. I have every right to lock you up and put you behind bars until the party's over."

Tsuna's eyes widened and he didn't waste time screaming. "Hibari look out!" Too late; Alaude's handcuffs were already around Hibari by the time he raised his tonfa instinctively to dodge whatever blow was coming his way.

_Click-click-_click-__click-__click-__click-_click-__click-__click__!_ Tsuna's family watched in shock as Alaude used his handcuffs with the cloud flames to multiply the cuffs so that there were enough to cover Hibari's entire body. This…this weapon worked faster and more efficient than Hibari's version of Alaude's Handcuffs!

Hibari made himself stay standing for several seconds before falling.

"Kufufufu. Beat by his own trick," Mukuro chuckled darkly. Hibari's head shot up glared. "Oya? Now he's baring his fangs at me. Kufufufu, am I supposed to be scared?" He knelt and grinned at Hibari.

"M-Mukuro! Don't irritate him any further!" Tsuna squeaked weakly. His muscles were tight with nervousness, waiting to see if Hibari was going to break himself out. Tsuna remembered seeing a flash of his Cloud bracelet, so he knew that Hibari still had the strength to fight.

Without a word, Alaude dragged Hibari out of the room.

"Hibari-san!"

"Leave him, Dame-Tsuna. Worry about yourself first." Tsuna whirled around to Reborn, who he had forgotten was in the room despite the killing aura.

"What do you mean by that, Reborn-san?"

"Come sit first, everyone," Giotto said.

"Giotto, what's going on?" G asked. Giotto looked at his own Guardians and shrugged.

"This concerns you as well, you you might as well sit." The blond stood up to go to the desk so one of the Guardians could take his place on the couch. He took his tea with him as well and ignored the mess around the room.

In front of this desk were two couches facing each other with a table in the middle. There was very little space between the couches and the desk because usually, they used this set when all the Guardians had to be present and many papers were needed to be handled, which meant more surface area was needed.

From Giotto's point of view, Tsuna sat on the left couch and his own Guardians sat on the right couch. The desk he was at now was not the one he used in meetings with allies, nor was it his usual writing desk.

All this was in a smaller room off to the right. The door was well placed so that no one who wasn't looking would notice it. If they did, they could assume that it was a storage room.

Next to Tsuna sat Yamamoto, Lambo, Chrome, and Ryohei. Lambo had his legs out in front of him, sprawled in a way that made him sit lazily on the sofa. Gokudera chose to stand beside Tsuna instead. Mukuro leaned on the back of the couch, currently looking at the hole in the wall Alaude made by tossing Hibari in.

On the other couch, G sat with his arms crossed and a leg up on the table. Beside him sat a calm Asari who was talking to Knuckle to sat beside him, then Lampo and Daemon. Unlike Lambo, Lampo sat properly, but looked just as bored. Reborn stayed where he was.

"So," G spoke up once everyone was settled, "what's this all about?"

Giotto explained that he promised to give the guards a day off, so all but the ones on shift would be ready if trouble arose.

G looked as if he wanted to call Giotto an idiot, but he held his tongue.

"Y…You want us—me and my Guardians, to help fight the Lestre Famiglia?" This was Tsuna, but he wasn't freaking out. Why?

Reborn said, "Tsuna, you seem calm about everything." Tsuna shifted uncomfortably under everyone's gaze.

"Well...it _is_ sort of...Hibari-san's fault that there's a hole in Primo's wall. This is a good way to make up for it. I'm really sorry, Primo."

"The hole isn't bothering me. It happens often enough that I'm surprised when there isn't one." The tenth generation sweat-dropped. "I don't like having children fight for us."

"Oya? I'm no child."

"Neither am I!" Gokudera and Lambo said. The former glared. "You're only seven!"

"_Teen_! Seven_teen_!"

"Primo, we'd like to help," Tsuna said honestly. He looked at his Guardians. All of them nodded.

Giotto hesitated. None of his Guardians would want these young ones to fight for him.

"I say to let them go."

"Lampo!" Knuckle looked at their youngest member.

"What? I was about their age when I joined the Vongola! And I still fought. How long were you guys with the mafia for?" He directed the question to Tsuna.

He thought back and cringed. He held up two fingers. He couldn't believe that he was admitting that he was in the mafia.

"Two years."

"Haha! Two."

"TWO EXTREME YEARS!"

"Two..."

"...I was born in it."

They looked at Mukuro who glared at them. "I'm not in the mafia."

"Two years isn't long," Asari murmured.

"We've done a lot in those two years!" Gokudera interjected. "We powered up! Our rings went beyond simple rings and were changed to suit us, the tenth generation Guardians!"

"Powered up?"

"N-never mind that. Can we help?" Tsuna asked. He really wanted to help Primo.

"You'll help even if you don't want to," Reborn's deep voice was filled with false sadness. Tsuna winced.

"They will have to be with the guests as well, now that we introduced them as our cousins. This means that they can't wander off too far!" Giotto could tell that Asari was totally against the idea. At least he had _someone_ on his side. He looked at G and could see that he was beginning to shift to Lampo's side of the argument. What about Knuckle and Daemon? Daemon had this...what was that—a _smirking _contest with Mukuro?

"Daemon. What do you think?" Daemon didn't move his eyes from Mukuro.

"Go ahead. I don't care. These brats won't know how to enjoy a rich man's party anyway."

_"What_!" Gokudera went all out on him. "Yes we do! Aristocrats aren't the only ones who know how to act in a party, you know!"

"Calm down!" Giotto and Tsuna said. They looked at each other and Tsuna went red with embarrassment because both of them in fact, calmed down and were looking at him. He tried to hide into the sofa.

Giotto let out a breath. "Knuckle, what about you?"

Knuckle looked disturbed—torn between two causes. He looked at Lampo, whose eyes showed that he was in the right and that Knuckle should be on his side. Knuckle looks away so that his decision wasn't made too quickly, just to meet G's eyes. They were full of confidence.

"Hm…this is an extreme choice," he said, using Ryohei's favourite word. He pondered over both sides. If these "children" inherited their rings, then they must have earned it, right? Right. So that means they are strong, and can protect themselves as well as their family, right? Right. What was the problem then? Ah—they were too young. But can they really be too young if they themselves already approved of them?

Tsuna never told them about their Will being inside the rings, but all of them already knew. It was Giotto who suggested transferring their Wills into the rings after they die and they didn't plan to change their minds, which means that in the future, they did transfer their Wills into the rings.

So, whose side should he be on?

* * *

><p>Gokudera tapped his foot on the carpet impatiently. Knuckle has been sitting there, thinking for at least half an hour and he still hasn't come up with an answer.<p>

"Oi, isn't it obvious that the vote's in our favour?"

"Yeah, Gokudera's right, ahaha!"

"But we still have to wait for Knuckle to vote," Lampo sighed and rang a bell for snacks. "If he hasn't said anything yet, we're going to be here for a while longer."

Tsuna groaned quietly. "Everyone has to vote?"

"Yes," Asari said. "Nothing will be decided until everyone has a vote."

"Then we're just waiting for Knuckle and Alaude!" Ryohei said. Tsuna raised his eyebrows in shock. He actually understood the situation!

"Alaude already said he doesn't care as long as he doesn't have to clean up after you," Giotto said.

_Th-That's nice of him..._

"We aren't just waiting for Knuckle; Hibari also has to have a say in the matter," Asari said. "So, until then, no one will be fighting the Lestre Family."

"He'll say 'I'll bite them to death'," Tsuna and his Guardians said together. Asari blinked and Lampo laughed softly. Daemon arched an eyebrow while G and Giotto simply stared. Reborn tilted his fedora and smirked. Gokudera lifted a finger and had a grin on his face. "Which means, Hibari already has his answer!"

"You know your family well," Giotto commented, pleased.

"He's not my family, kufufufu."

Tsuna twitched. _Still saying that, Mukuro?_

"I have a decision!" Knuckle announced.

"_And?"_ The priest looked up, startled to find that everyone was waiting for his answer. He sweated.

"I think no, they should not go."

"What!"

"But—!"

"Knuckle, why?"

"Hah!"

"Kufufu…you want to die?"

"M-Mukuro!"

"Haha! Do you want to reconsider?"

"BUT COMPETITIONS ARE _EXTREME!"_

The room broke into chaos at Knuckle's words.

A hand slammed on the desk.

Tsuna gulped. It looked like Giotto was angry—or fed up…and that doesn't sound like a good thing.

"Knuckle, did you have something else to add?"

Knuckle nodded. "The reason that I say no is…even though they probably passed our trials and fully inherited the rings, which means that they are strong and worthy, they are still children—children, who have been in this dark world for two years or more, and have faced many hardships together—but they are children nonetheless."

They stared at him in disbelief.

"Knuckle, who's side are you on?" Asari broke the silence with an exasperated tone, unsure whether he should laugh or be mad at his friend.

Knuckle opened his mouth to reply confidently but then closed it when he realised that he contradicted himself in that one sentence. He chuckled. "Sorry, Asari, Giotto. Seems like I'm with Lampo this time."

"Yes!" Yamamoto and Ryohei said. They gave each other high fives each other.

Giotto pondered over what his Sun Guardian just said. "No, it's alright. I understand what you mean. In the future, we _did_ accept them. Decimo."

Startled that he was suddenly called, Tsuna shot up and looked around. Reborn hid a smile.

Giotto ignored the snickers and Tsuna's mistake of thinking that he was in school and said, "Do you promise to be careful?"

Tsuna nodded seriously three times. "We will all be careful."

"Okay…"

Asari sighed, seeing that he couldn't stop these teens from doing what they wished.

"Now we just have to move on with the plan," Giotto announced. Alaude walked in with a satisfied look in his eyes. Tsuna worried over Hibari again.

_Thonk!_

"Ite!" Tsuna fell back to the couch and rubbed his sore head.

"Boss! Are you okay! What happened?" Gokudera knelt beside Tsuna.

"Ite-te-te…" Tsuna looked on the floor and picked up an inkwell. He looked around and saw Reborn walking over to him.

"EEP!"

"Pay attention!" Reborn whacked Tsuna across the head to Gokudera's horror.

"Oof!" And Reborn sat on a chair nearby..

* * *

><p>Kovato walked down the halls of the mansion, thinking about the younger cousins Giotto brought to them. He knew that Giotto had Ricardo, the only cousin they knew of. Now, these people showed up. And if they're cousins…Yoshi should also have Vongola blood running through his veins. He stopped in midstride. Could Giotto be planning on having him become Secondo instead of Ricardo? He shook his head. That Yoshi looked too weak to do anything. Now where <em>was<em> Giotto? He was pretty sure he told him where he was going to be, but…he couldn't remember. Kovato frowned.

"Old age is getting to me," he muttered and cursed. He could see that the sun was setting. The ball would also be starting with Giotto's introductions, the same as last night. Better get going. _And,_ to give that Lampo an earful. He'll have to fight the boy to see if he improved since last time.

* * *

><p>"Yamamoto," Asari said after the meeting was over. Yamamoto turned around and grinned.<p>

"Yo, Asari!"

"Do you want to walk in the gardens?"

"Sure! Tsuna, I'll be back in a bit!" He called.

"Okay!"

They walked in comfortable silence. Yamamoto was humming a happy tune as he looked at his surroundings. The steps leading to the garden were old stones. The cracks had tuffs of grass or moss poking out.

Asari led them to a stone table pass through a garden of beautiful flowers and trees.

"You have a nice garden here!" Asari smiled gently.

"Yes, it is. Giotto wanted me to feel at home, so we all pitched in and grew it." Yamamoto whistled.

"That must have been fun! But it probably took a long time…"

"Yamamoto," he said.

"Hm?"

"Do you take the mafia seriously?" He asked. Yamamoto's smile faltered. This question again. Then his smile came back at full force.

"Of course I do!"

"How can you, when you always treat it as if it's some game?"

"But," Yamamoto said, "I _don't_ treat it as a game. At one point, I did, but now I know—I am well aware that the mafia isn't a game." Asari stayed silent, waiting for Yamamoto to go on. He baseball player inhaled and let out the breath loudly. "Tsuna is always worried and nervous for us over one reason or another. He has to relax sometimes or else he'll panic. Usually Reborn is there to…calm him down,"

_If you can call…hitting him over the head or kicking him half way across the room as calming down…_

"Sometimes that isn't enough. So I play the fool and release the tension that's always in the air!" He finished cheerfully. "Once Tsuna's relaxed, Gokudera will also calm down, which leads to Lambo not being beat up by him anymore, and then we all just sort of…you know?

"I feel that they need to remember that life isn't all about charging into an enemy's base and saving the world." Yamamot gave him a cheesy grin and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

Asari took a while to digest this. He never thought of it that way. Asari acted the way he does because it was just in his personality. As for panic? Giotto rarely showed that. Then he remembered that Tsuna was much younger than Giotto when his friend became boss. Young Tsunayoshi must have a lot on his shoulders. He sighed. At least he has his Guardians with him.

"Sorry for putting you on the spot, Yamamoto. I just had to make sure you knew what you were doing."

Yamamoto smiled cheerfully and sadly at the same time. "I do, I do! No worries! I know exactly what I need to do. I need to protect them from falling too deep into this world."

* * *

><p>"Look, it's the Vongola Family," a girl whispered to her friend from another family.<p>

"Who would have known that they are just around the same age as us, but are already in the core of the mafia's alliances…" The other agreed.

"Their cousins seem to be interesting people as well."

"Cousins?"

"Oh—right, you arrived today. Do you see those young men beside them? Those are their cousins from a foreign country."

The other girl gasped. "I didn't know they had Asian cousins! I thought Primo's only other relative was Ricardo!"

Giotto started the introductions again. They were pretty much the same as last night's.

Tonight, the tenth generation were dressed differently. None of them had anything that was extra weight. Even Chrome, since she gathered up her courage and told the maids to back off entirely. She was wearing her Kokuyo Middle School uniform under the illusion of a dress that weighed absolutely nothing, since it was just an illusion. By now, her illusions were almost as good as Mukuro's. Almost.

The musicians played their tunes and people either danced or talked.

Again, they were swarmed with mafia member who haven't seen them before. One of Giotto's Guardians was always nearby to make sure nothing too extreme happened.

Tsuna was with Gokudera and was currently doing his best to answer questions directed to him from a variety of people, from simple Mafioso to the Bosses of families.

"Well, hello there, Yoshi," a cool voice said. The back of Tsuna's neck prickled at the voice. People moved away from him and two other males with him. The people who were surrounding Tsuna were still around, close enough to eavesdrop but not being obvious about it.

Giotto was talking to Onido and saw Ricardo. _Damn!_

Tsuna took a step back so that there was a metre of space between them. Precipitation appeared on his back. Yamamoto waved at Tsuna, not knowing the situation. He stood beside Gokudera and got a knock on the head.

"Baseball idiot."

"Eh?" Yamamoto rubbed his head.

Tsuna looked at the boy who looked to be the same or a few years older than he and his friends. _He looks like Xanxus. Minus the scars…oh hell. Secondo?_ Tsuna's insides melted with fear as he tried to keep a calm facial expression. _No wait. He didn't reign until…_ Tsuna thought back to Reborn's history lessons and could remember a single thing for the life of him.

"Hello," Tsuna said after taking a breath. He gave him a bright smile that had a hint of nervousness.

Ricardo had short, black spiky hair. His skin had a slight tan from being out in the sun a lot. His eyes were cold and emotionless at the moment, unlike Xanxus' red eyes which always had hatred or rage. Ricardo's face had a smile that didn't reach his eyes. He was as tall as Yamamoto, which was about a head taller than Tsuna.

Gokudera glanced at Secondo's two companions. They were hard core mafia and looked like they were comfortable being with Ricardo. _So these are his cronies. Pah!_

"I'm surprised that I don't know you," Ricardo continued.

Tsuna kept his smile. "For my entire life, I have lived half way across the world. It's not a surprise that you don't know me or my friends," Tsuna said and gestured to Yamamoto, Gokudera and Ryohei—wait. Huh? When did they get here? He turned his head slightly and saw his other Guardians also with him; except for Hibari and Mukuro.

_I hope we don't look intimidating through numbers,_ Tsuna thought nervously and looked at Ricardo. He wasn't affected at all.

"Oh, that doesn't stop my knowledge of the Vongola Family though."

Gokudera raised an eyebrow. "You know every person you're related to?"

"But of course," Ricardo answered easily, looking slightly peeved that Gokudera interrupted him. "I am the heir to the Vongola Family. I _have_ to know who I'm related to. Otherwise, how else am I to get help from them when I need it?"

_More like kill them so only you are the only candidate to become Secondo._ Gokudera's dark thoughts ran through his head. Tsuna and Yamamoto tensed; being near Gokudera all the time meant that they were sensitive to the bomber's attitude.

_No, Gokudera…Dark thoughts aren't good here!_ Tsuna begged his friend to consider this point. _If he has Hyper Intuition he might find out from your body language that you don't like him!_

Ricardo didn't faze.

"Well then," Tsuna said casually and stuck out his hand although he didn't know what possessed him to do so. It certainly wasn't Mukuro. "I'm Yoshi Sawada. My friends call me Yoshi."

"Alright, _Sawada._" Ricardo grabbed the hand and gave it a hard squeeze.

"Ricardo," Giotto was coming towards them. He had a happy smile on his face. Tsuna sensed that it was fake. When he was close enough, Ricardo's face turned up and into a grin a young man of his age should have, not that closed and confined face. Tsuna cocked his head. _If I could tell that the smile is fake, shouldn't Secondo also be able to tell? Unless he doesn't have…_

"Giotto!"

Giotto put a hand on Ricardo's shoulder and patted it. "How are you doing these few years? I haven't seen you in forever." Giotto laughed. Tsuna could feel his eyes widening and he quickly closed them so that no one would notice. _Hiiiee…Primo doesn't know that Secondo will be the Vongola's downfall, does he… yikes!_

He felt a flash of pain in his back and almost shouted out. He turned around quickly and saw Reborn in the shadows. Tsuna gulped. He looked at Yamamoto and Chrome, whom both nodded and slipped away. It was time to start their plan.

Giotto broke off his conversation with Ricardo after a few minutes of catch up. He wandered off to talk to other people and Tsuna went to the windows. In his hand was a glass of champagne Reborn gave him. He hasn't even taken a sip of it yet, afraid of what Reborn might have put in there.

"Juudaime." Gokudera switched to Japanese. "I don't like him."

Tsuna sweat-dropped. "Y-You don't have to like him, Gokudera-kun…"

They weren't standing in full view, since whoever outside would be able to see them. The windows didn't have glass, since they didn't find a replacement for the one broken…er, during the food fight. So it was an open window that was decorated beautifully.

They could see Yamamoto and Chrome stop by the steps and look up and them. Tsuna smiled and mouthed the words, "Be careful". Yamamoto gave him a cheery salute with his wooden Shigure Kintoki and Chrome bowed. She took out her trident and dispersed her illusion. Then she made them invisible in a cloud of mist.

"Tsuna, you better not mess up," Reborn told him. Tsuna jumped and nearly spilled his glass.

"Reborn! Stop popping up out of nowhere!"

"It's your fault for not noticing that I was here."

Tsuna grumbled.

"And drink that. Now."

"Wh-What's in it?" He asked with his eyebrow knitted together. He brought the glass to eye level and stared into the clear content.

"Reborn-san, is it some type of elixir that will grant Boss powers?" Gokudera's eyes were alight with hope.

"Gokudera-kun…"

Reborn smirked. "In a way, yes."

"Boss! You must drink it!" Gokudera looked so jumpy.

"H-Hah?"

"Drink it, Juudaime!"

"I-I'll drink it later!"

A howl of pain was heard from where they were standing. The rest of the Mafiosi didn't notice, since they weren't listening for it.

"So they found them," Reborn mused.

"I hope they're alright."

"Believe in your family, Dame-Tsuna." Tsuna loosened his tight grip on the glass.

"_Sigh._ You're right, Reborn."

"Oh look. Someone's coming near. Have _fun,_" Reborn smirked. Tsuna turned and saw two girls walking towards them. They were most likely going to Gokudera, even though he had a scowl on his face. The moment they spoke, Gokudera gritted his teeth.

"Just call us by our names. We're practically the same age!" The girls looked startled. They looked at each other for a second and then smiled at Gokudera.

"Okay then, Hayato! We were just wondering about life in Japan! How is it there?"

Gokudera wanted to tell them to shut up and walk off, but he learned that those words weren't allowed to be said near ladies, nor was it polite to just walk off to who knows where. So, he and Tsuna were forced to talk to them.

Half way through explaining to them about the clothes (Gokudera took history lessons of Japan so he was okay with it) when Tsuna spotted a white owl hooting and flying in complex moves in the air.

This meant that the enemy was a large group and that they needed more help if they wanted to overpower the enemy without killing them. Tsuna glanced at Gokudera who instantly got the message. After cutting the lecture short, he excused them and they walked briskly away.

"We finally get to fight!" Gokudera cheered silently so only Tsuna could hear. They passed Lambo who was at the snack table. Gokudera gave him a rude poke to tell him that they were on to the enemy. Lambo almost choked and drank down his goblet.

Tsuna stopped. "Lambo, hold this for me—Reborn gave it to me, so you shouldn't drink it." After hearing that Reborn was the one who gave the glass, Lambo didn't even want to touch it anymore, let alone drink from it.

"Okay, Young Vongola." Then as they snuck through the dark corridors of the servant's hall, a small yellow bird landed on the well which was right beside them.

"H-Hibird!" Tsuna petted the bird.

"Boss! He has something attached to his claws!" Tsuna looked closely and saw a rolled up piece of paper tied off with a few strands of hair.

He unrolled it.

_Herbivores at the east and west side. _

_Don't come to the east or I will bite you to death._

"Hibari-san got himself free!"

"If he has one side of the forest, then we can take care of the west side no problem!"

Tsuna nodded. "Chrome and Yamamoto still need back up. We can ask Onii-san to help them."

"Kufufufufu. No need. I'll go. They have the most weaklings I can torture." The mist around them solidified to show Mukuro in his Kokuyo uniform.

"Be careful, Mukuro!" Mukuro looked startled when he looked at his so called boss. His smirk came back. And he was gone.

"Let's go!" He brought out his mittens and put them on. Gokudera activated his belt so that dynamite sticks covered his entire body. Tsuna conserved his strength and decided to go into Hyper Dying Will Mode only after he saw the enemy.

They ran through the forest. The animals were running back to their homes when they felt the human movements around them. The two of them heard people whispering. Gokudera knelt and Tsuna followed his lead. They peaked out from the trees and saw a group of about fifty. Gokudera swore.

Tsuna's eyes quickly went over the enemy. Guns, knives, grenades, light armour. He stopped there. Did mafia wear armour to battle? He shook his head. That wasn't the point. This group didn't seem like their daily raiding party. He should know that after going through one in the Vongola Mansion earlier this year during his trip to Italy with his family. This party was armed to kill hundreds, or at least threaten to. They had to be stopped here.

Tsuna and Gokudera's eyes met. They nodded confidently to each other. An orange Dying Will flame came to life on Tsuna's forehead and his mittens turned into red gloves with thrusters.

Gokudera tossed a few smoke bombs into the groups and they charged in.

Tsuna dodged blows. He hit nerves and pressure points. There were a few times where he had to use Zero Point Breakthrough but it wasn't often.

* * *

><p>Each of them took out a tenth of the group before the smoke dispersed. The Lestre men were panicked, worried about where the next attack would come from. Some of them accidentally hit their own comrades.<p>

Tsuna saw that someone was aiming the gun carelessly and was about to pull the trigger. He swooped down and yanks the arm so it was facing the sky. The shot went off harmlessly. He knocked the man out with a well placed blow and did the same to the ones around him. Now, they all saw who was attacking; or they slightly did. Since it was pitch dark they couldn't see where they were going except for the little bit of moon light that was coming through the trees.

Tsuna's victims didn't see what hit them until the flame on his forehead was right over them. Gokudera had no such warning and released his dynamites unkindly.

Within fifteen minutes, around ten were left. Five dynamites finished them off. The forestry was covered with lumps that were unconscious people. Tsuna quickly went over then as they dragged them all to one area. Two had injuries from knives and one had a bullet wound on the right shoulder.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna's anxious voice brought him over. They knelt next to the man with the bullet wound. Tsuna kept himself in Hyper Mode for the sake of a light. Gokudera looked at the man.

"Boss! We have to bring him to one of the Sun Guardians quickly!" He looked at the other two. "Tch! These two can survive. It's not so deep." With quick efficiency he ripped the cloth of the owner and made it into a ball. He slapped the owner awake. He groaned. "Oi! Listen here bastard!" He pressed the bundle of cloth on the wound and the man screamed.

"Gokudera-kun!"

"Listen well!" Gokudera pulled the man's hand over to the wound and made him press it himself. "Keep your hand on this so the bleeding stops. Don't try to move or else you'll die of blood loss!" The man nodded quickly. Gokudera did the same to the other person. Then five people came crashing through. Tsuna recognised the Vongola emblem on the soldiers' breast pocket.

"Please take their weapons and make sure they don't injure themselves any further. Don't hurt them." Tsuna was most surprised when they nodded without hesitation and did the tasks carefully. In fact, they were already doing these things before he had finished talking. Back at home if he tried to get the guards to do this, they would object and say that they should either torture or kill them instead of treating them.

He'll have to ask Reborn about that later. He and Gokudera made their way back to the Vongola mansion on one of Gokudera's Sistema CAI bone hoops. The man was between them. Tsuna was back to normal and was worrying over the man that was lying on the surface of their transportation. Gokudera was trying to stop the massive blood flow coming out from the wound. They could tell that there was so much blood it looked black.

* * *

><p>In two minutes they reached the wing where all the wounded were taken to. They quickly and quietly went into the dimly lit room and found Knuckle waiting for them, as planned.<p>

"That looks terrible. Quickly—bring him here!" They followed Knuckle out the room and into a smaller one, where they won't disturb the few who were resting in the big room.

Knuckle lit the eight candles around the room. They were small and didn't light the room much. But then Knuckle adjusted the reflective materials put around the candles and the space quickly brightened. Then he twiddled with the ones attached to the walls.

The room was even brighter now and Tsuna was amazed by how little effort that took. Knuckle ushered them back out.

"No," he said firmly when Tsuna objected. "You'll be missed from the party and people will start wondering. Clean yourselves up, too. You look like a mess!"

They looked at themselves and saw the marks on their clothes from the fight.

"Oops," Gokudera said.

"The man will make it, amen to that. Now go!"

After running back to their rooms to find something else to wear, they rushed back down. They met in the hallway and went down together.

A waiter ran to catch up to them. They were told that a few people had already asked for them and no one knew where they went. The waiter paled when he mentioned that Secondo was also looking for young master Yoshi. They ran faster.

Mukurou flew in and hovered in front of the two before they reached the party.

"There's a small group coming." This was Mukuro possessing the animal.

"What!"

"Boss, we'll let Turf-Top and the Stupid Cow to take care of it! The bosses are going to start looking for you."

Tsuna groaned. "Why are they all looking for _me?_" He wailed as they ran. He loosened his tie slightly.

"It's because Boss is just that amazing!"

"Th-thanks...I guess."

On they went, now walking. They looked for Lambo and Ryohei. "Onii-san, Lambo!" They were talking to a bulky man whom Tsuna knew that it was Ryohei who began the talking. Lambo was probably forced by Ryohei to stay with him. Lambo looked very relieved when he saw Tsuna.

"Did you need help with something?"

"Yo, Sawada!"

"Uh, yeah. Someone wanted to meet with you so you guys can set up a day for a…boxing match." He sweat-dropped. That was the code they decided on using on Ryohei if he was needed at any time. Ryohei's eyes lightened with either excitement or recognition.

"Osu! Where is this man!" Tsuna directed him to the place and he ran off, dragging Lambo whose body waved like a flag.

_Why am I always the one being dragged?_ Lambo asked himself and came up with no answer.

* * *

><p>The party continued on like this: someone would come back and another would leave. There was never a time when all eight of them were in the ball room at one time. There were always one or two people outside, warding off the enemies as the guards would come and clean them up.<p>

When dinner rolled around the corner, Giotto was very strict. He stood looking intimidating over all of them with his arms crossed.

"Not a single one of you is going to skip your meals to go romping off."

"We'll be skipping _part_ of it," Yamamoto put in lightly and quietly with a nervous smile.

Giotto shot a look at him. "Not even a part. You're all to _stay_ and _eat._ None—_none—_of you will be fighting during meal times. You need to eat."

"Only herbivores need to eat every meal. And I hate crowds."

Giotto directed his gaze at Hibari this time. "And I'm not finished with you, Hibari. You destroyed a cell completely and beat up all the others senseless. I have two of my men in the infirmary because of you." _Not to mention Alaude is going to blame it all on me!_

"Hn. They were weak."

"How did you get out anyway?" Giotto demanded. Hibari turned and hn'd.

_H-He's ignoring Primo!_ They thought in horror.

"Nothing can keep me confined," he eventually growled and walked off. Giotto was taken aback. And he let out a chuckle after a minute.

"P-Primo?" Tsuna said cautiously.

"Ah…I won't try to lock him up again. The Cloud Guardians are after all, clouds that go wherever they want. Not even the Sky can stop them."

Gokudera tried to argue that they needed to fight off the enemy, and Mukuro agreed.

"M-Mukuro…I think you need to rest," Tsuna said. _His…he's getting too blood thirsty…I need him to calm down before he kills someone. So far, he's only…mentally incapacitated them._ "Gokudera-kun, you haven't eaten at all today. And I'm hungry," he added as an afterthought. Gokudera immediately agreed to eat.

"Let's go! Boss is hungry! Turf-Top, you better not lag behind!" Gokudera stormed towards their table, where most people were beginning to be seated at. The rest followed.

"You still need a lot of practice," Reborn said. "You shouldn't need to use your hunger to make your men listen to you."

"Mou, Reborn!"

Like last night, the first's Guardians sat to the right. Giotto sat at the head. The change was that right beside the seat to the left where Tsuna sat last night, was Secondo. Tsuna shrugged. He's the heir, so he should sit there. _I don't want to sit beside him!_

He was saved by Reborn who took the second seat. Tsuna sighed with relief and took the third.

"Ricardo-san, where are your two friends?"

"They aren't my friends," he scowled, as if the relationship offended him. "I told them to sit somewhere else." He gestured down the table. The farthest seats were taken by the two who came with him. Tsuna frowned in his head.

"But…"

"Shut up and sit down," Reborn said. Tsuna obeyed instantly. Ricardo looked at Reborn curiously while at the same time cautiously. This man was _dangerous._ He didn't want to sit beside him anymore.

"Who are you?" he dared ask. Reborn looked at him from the shadows of his fedora.

"I am Leon, the best hitman in the world."

"Oh?" Now he was interested. Reborn took off his hat at the dinner table.

They ate in silence for a while, with Reborn occasionally stepping on Tsuna's foot, telling him to fix _something_ from his posture. Mind you, Tsuna's right foot would be numb for the next few days.

Ricardo noticed but didn't say anything. He also noticed the scowl Tsuna always sent to his dish whenever it happened. What was their relationship, if they were acting as if it was nothing?

* * *

><p>The banquet passed by uneventfully and on came the dance. They already had their own dance partners, except for the tenth generation and Reborn.<p>

"I don't want to dance," Tsuna muttered to Reborn. "I don't even know what they're dancing to! I'll probably step on someone's foot."

"If you do that I will kill you," Reborn said casually.

"Hie—huh?" Tsuna suddenly stopped as they made their way to the ballroom and looked at their group. It was currently ten in the evening. Everyone else stopped with him.

"Boss?" Gokudera and Chrome questioned. Yamamoto cocked his head. Ryohei was punching the air, still hyped up from the "boxing match" he won hours before. Lambo wasn't excited for the dancing, although he knew that he was probably a looker and people would want to dance with him.

"Where's Hibari-san? I didn't see him while we were eating…"

"He said something about eating in his room," Ryohei said, just remembering.

"Where…is he now?" Tsuna asked. They looked at each other. He paled. "Don't tell me he went to look for people to bite to death!"

"I-I'm sure he's fine," Gokudera said with a wave of an unsure hand.

"Y-Yeah…but," Tsuna frowned worriedly. "He could have at least told us…"

"Kufufufu. He's not going to tell you if he's going to fight. You don't see me doing that now do you?" Mukuro vanished. _"And I'm not going to let him take all the fun."_ His voice whispered.

"No," Tsuna sighed. The he brightened. "Reborn! I think I should still go check on him! I'll be right back!"

Reborn snagged the back of his shirt.

"Nice try. You're not getting away from ballroom dancing. I still haven't tested out to see if you can do it or not. So you're staying."

"Buuut—"

"Primo said so as well."

"Eh?" Tsuna rolled his eyes to the top of his head and thought of what Giotto might have said. "Oh! Before he made us eat dinner…"

* * *

><p>"You helped us a lot. I thank you, Decimo," Giotto said. "With so many people, we couldn't do it ourselves."<p>

"I-It's fine!" Tsuna said quickly.

"The guards can take care of the rest, now that the mad rush is over." Giotto's eyes darkened. "What were they thinking, sending over two hundred people here when they know that there are hundreds of mafia families here?"

Tsuna and his Guardians decided not to answer since Giotto seemed to talk to himself.

"You can finally enjoy yourselves!"

"What?"

"The ball is after the meal. You can dance all night!"

_I don't want to dance!_ Tsuna screamed in his head.

"Dance?" Ryohei repeated. _And Onii-san doesn't know what we're talking about…as usual…_

"Footwork," Yamamoto laughed, "although I'm not sure how to do it."

"That's _extreme!"_

"O-Onii-san…"

"It's not footwork, baseball idiot!"

"Yare, yare…I don't want to dance." _Neither do I!_ Tsuna complained.

"I think I'll help the guards instead…"

Giotto's eyes narrowed. "No."

* * *

><p>"But I still don't want to dance."<p>

"You're going." By now, everyone was already through the doors, looking for their partners and waiting for the music to start. Reborn thought it was safe enough to kick Tsuna into the wall.

"GAAAK!"

_SPLAT!_

Tsuna's night was going to be torturous…

* * *

><p>He finally flopped onto his bed after a long dip in the hot springs the Vongola Mansion offered. His feet were also sore from standing and moving around so much. After they said goodbye to <em>every single guest,<em> he was ready to fall over and sleep to his heart's content.

"You barely passed today," Reborn commented.

"Reborn!" Tsuna complained. "Why do I have to go through this?"

"You're a Boss. You should know why."

Tsuna blew out a breath. He sat up. "Right! Reborn, when Gokudera and I were finishing our fight, the guards came and took care of the invaders. They were already treating what wounds they had and were taking their weapons away from them before I could ask them to do that. They also didn't hurt them any further than they already were. If we were in our time, that won't happen unless I kept watch on them and reminded them not to. The reaction is so different!"

Reborn smirked. "You know the answer to that already, Dame-Tsuna."

"Eh? I do?"

"Vongola Primo is their boss. As you know, he started the Vongola as a vigilant group. All his guards follow his way. Those who don't were quickly changed by his attitude or cast off. I'd assume that Primo always tells them how to treat invaders, so they will automatically act like that even if Primo isn't around."

"Oh…" Tsuna said. He realised how far he had to go before he could reach Giotto's level. Then he remembered something else.

"Um…Reborn, what was that thing you told me to drink?" He asked. _I still didn't drink it…_

"If you want to know, you have to drink it."

"N-No thanks…"

"Your loss." Reborn shrugged. He reached into his suit. Tsuna stiffened. "If you change your mind…" he threw the bottle at Tsuna. It hit his head with a painful smack.

The door to his room closed after Reborn said, "We're meeting Talbot in his lab tomorrow at dawn. No one is to be late. Tell this to your Guardians."

"Eh! _Dawn?_ Why dawn? I can't wake up that early! It's already midnight!" But Reborn had already left.

Tsuna stared at the door with the bottle in his limp right hand.

"AARRG!" He pulled his hair and rolled around his bed restlessly.

He sat back up and looked at the bottle. "Reborn won't actually…_harm_ me in any way…right?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>__  
><em>

_**Edited 2015-03-18th**_


	14. Check, Check, Triple Check!

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Hnn…" Tsuna yawned and stretched his arms. He felt so rested, without having Reborn wake him up the traditional Vongola way.

_Hm…why was it called the traditional Vongola way? No…it can't be…did the ninth also have to be woken up like that when he was my age? Or was this method just used on Vongolas throughout the ages?_

He sat up and yawned again. His looked around sleepily in his dark room. Huh? Dark? He scratched his messy hair. Why was he wide awake before the sun rose? He pushed the covers off and pulled the heavy curtain aside to reveal the large window. He stood in the middle of it: nothing; no light whatsoever.

Tsuna had woken up an hour before dawn.

"Why!" He fell to his knees and placed a hand flat against the window. "Why did I wake up so early?"

His pitiful cry brought Gokudera running to his room.

"Juudaime?" He found Tsuna crouched by the window and dropped the book he was holding. "Juudaime!" He turned Tsuna and looked over him. "Where were you shot? Juudaime! Don't die on me!"

"E-Eh? G-Gokudera-kun! I'm not dying! I wasn't even shot!"

Gokudera didn't believe him and continued to turn Tsuna this way and that. His boss sighed and waited for Gokudera to finish his examination for red blotches.

"Juudaime…you're fine…"

"I told you…"

"I-I…I'M SORRY FOR DISTURBING YOU, JUUDAIME!" Gokudera hit his head against the floor.

"G-Gokudera-kun! Stop!"

His right hand man stopped, but it took a lot of convincing on Tsuna's part. "That's right—we need to wake everyone else up!" Tsuna suddenly remembered Reborn's command last night and told Gokudera about it.

"If Reborn-san ordered that, then we must do exactly as he wishes, Juudaime!" Gokudera said, fully understanding what Reborn can do to them if they didn't meet his expectations.

Tsuna nodded.

"Then I'll wake the baseball freak, lawn head, and Dokuro! Juudaime, would you wake the stupid cow and…no…that won't work."

"Eh?"

"It's too dangerous for you to wake the prefect or that Mukuro. They might try to harm you. I'll wake them up!"

"R-Right, then I'll wake up Lambo, Chrome, and Onii-san. Waking Mukuro and Hibari-san will be a hard task…" Tsuna shivered at the thought. _Let's hope they are already awake!_

"Oh! And bring the Sonar with you as well!"

Gokudera paused. "The vial?"

Tsuna nodded. "I think Reborn wants us to give Talbot the items now."

Gokudera left to do as asked. Tsuna quickly tossed on a shirt and pants. Taking his mittens from the table, he charged out and found his Lightning Guardian's room.

"Lambo!" He banged on the door with his fist twice and waited. He did it again, harder. "Lambo! Are you awake?" He pressed his ear to the door and heard a snore. He jiggled the doorknob and found it unlocked.

"Lambo, I'm coming in…" He stuck his head in and waited until his eyes adjusted to the light. Tsuna found himself sweat-dropping. This Lambo…Adult Lambo…was better organised than their Lambo. Adult Lambo kept his clothes in the drawer and the mess to a minimum; he can actually see the floor here, whereas if this were the younger Lambo, there would be candy wrappers everywhere, mud, rocks, grass—basically what you can find in the yard.

Tsuna stepped into the room. He pulled the curtains open, which didn't help because the sun wasn't up yet. He went to shake his friend awake.

"Lambo. Lambo! Wake up!"

Lambo grunted and rolled over. Tsuna stood up with his arms crossed, wondering what he should do. There was no way he was going to use Reborn's tactics to wake him up. That was too mean.

"Haa…Laaaaambo!" No reaction. Tsuna drooped. "I'll try again after waking up Chrome and onii-san…"

_Knock! Knock!_

"Onii-san! Are you in there?" Tsuna called loudly. _Maybe he woke up and went running around somewhere._

"_Extreme!"_

"_Hiiiee!"_ The door flew open and would have slammed Tsuna into the wall if it didn't open inwards. Ryohei was just heading out for his morning exercises.

"Oh, Sawada! Are you going to train with me?" Tsuna shook his head slowly. "Oh…Then you must be here to join the boxing club!"

"That's not it!"

"Why are you awake _extremely_ early then?" Confusion was evident in his voice.

"Reborn wants all of us to go to Talbot's lab before dawn…"

"That sounds _extreme!_ Let's go, Sawada! They probably want us to do some boxing down there!"

"W-Wait!" Tsuna was being pulled by Ryohei down the hall. "We need to wake Chrome and Lambo!"

"What? They're not awake yet?"

"No, not yet. I thought that I should wake you or Chrome first. Since you were closer…"

"Boss?" Chrome's door was half open and her head popped out. Her right eye was covered by a white, plain eye patch.

"Chrome!"

"I…heard an explosion in Mukuro-sama's room and voices outside," she replied softly to Tsuna's unanswered question.

"A-Ah…that must be Gokudera-kun." He explained to her where they needed to go and she nodded. Chrome went back into her dark room and changed into her uniform as Tsuna led the way to Lambo's room, which was still wide open.

"LAMBO! YOU NEED TO WAKE UP _TO THE EXTREME!_ WE HAVE SOME TRAINING TO DO!"

"Aah!" Lambo sat up in bed and his legs came up, his wild eyes darting around his room and saw Ryohei with Tsuna looking sheepish behind him.

"Young Vongola and Ryohei?"

"LET'S GO!" Ryohei was definitely fired up this morning.

"Hiie! Onii-san, you'll wake up everyone else! We don't know how to wake up Hibari-san yet!" _I hope Gokudera-kun didn't do anything rash yet!_

"Hibari? I'll do it!" He offered and spun around to leave the room.

"HIBARIII!"

Lambo also looked ready to run away when Hibari went on his rampage. Both occupants in the room froze when they heard the whack of a tonfa on…something. Lambo hid under his blankets and shivered.

"Lambo, we have to go," Tsuna pulled at the blanket but Lambo refused to let go.

"You stupid cow! Are you causing trouble for Juudaime again?" Gokudera ran in with a dynamite stick in his hand. His hair shadowed his grim face. "Don't worry, Juudaime. I'll get him out of there." The stick lit up by itself and the familiar sound of it fizzing came to their ears. Gokudera walked slowly to the bed. Lambo peeked out and his eyes popped out of his head.

"Gokudera don't do that!" As Gokudera smirked and tossed it, Lambo caught the weapon as if it were a hot potato and threw it back to Gokudera who whacked it to the bed again in surprise.

"AAAH!" Lambo and Tsuna screamed. Lambo jumped and landed in Tsuna's arms.

"Young Vongola—save me!"

"Lambo get off me!" He fell over.

BOOM!

…The smoke made them cough for a few seconds before it dispersed.

"A…smoke bomb?" Tsuna said after a cough. He was on the ground with Lambo beside him, twitching from the near death experience.

"Tch! I was only going to give the stupid cow a scare. There's no way I'd actually kill him," Gokudera scoffed and pushed his bangs away from his forehead.

"Gotta…stay…calm…" Lambo whimpered and cried a waterfall.

"Hiie! Lambo! Everything's alright!" Tsuna couldn't believe he was comforting someone that was practically the same age as him. "We have to keep our voices down; otherwise we'll wake up Primo and his Guardians!" Lambo's sobs turned to sniffles after a few minutes and Tsuna sighed with relief. Gokudera removed his hands from his ears and sighed as well.

"Now that we're all calmed, we can move on to Talbot's," Gokudera said. He spoke too soon.

"Herbivores. What is this ruckus about?" The door was kicked down. Ryohei stood behind Hibari with a bump swelling on his forehead.

"Onii-san!"

"I will bite you all to death for disrupting my peace."

"Hiie! We're sorry!"

"Damn you! Don't scare Juudaime!" Gokudera pounced and prepared himself to protect Tsuna.

Hibari…smirked.

* * *

><p>Reborn tapped his shoe against the floor impatiently.<p>

Talbot was fiddling with something as he waited patiently. Giotto was also there but he was dozing off. He was wearing his trademark suit with the cloak draped on the back of the chair. The sudden slam of the hidden entrance closing jolted him out of his sleep.

"_I told you, it's underground!"_ The two could hear Gokudera's loud voice approach.

"_Maa Gokudera! It was still a fun experience!"_

"_Yare, yare, how was I supposed to know that it was hidden away?"_

"_Then you should have kept your mouth shut!"_

A trickle of sweat rolled down Giotto's face. How can they be so cheerful this early in the morning?

"How did they get in?" Talbot mused.

"Gokudera must have solved the puzzle concerning the periodic table. It's quite simple, if one knows it very well," Reborn answered.

"_Gokudera-kun, Lambo! We shouldn't argue with each other…"_

"_Hai, Juudaime! Although it was the stupid cow who started it."_

"_This tunnel is EXTREME!"_

Giotto felt the echo from his seat and felt sorry for the ones in the corridor since the echo must have been greater.

Finally, they reached the door.

_"Ara? It won't open,"_ Tsuna said. Reborn smirked. The reason why Giotto was the only one here other than Reborn and Talbot was because the only way the door can open was with Giotto's (or any of his descendants') Sky flames.

_"Kufufufu. Just destroy it."_

_"Hiiiie! I can't do that! Primo will get mad at me!"_

_"Yare yare, Reborn's the one who told us to be here by dawn…"_ they heard Lambo yawn. _"If he's not going to open the door for us, why should we wait patiently to open it?"_

_"Wait."_ Gokudera's voice silenced everyone else's. Giotto was curious as to what they were doing on the other side.

* * *

><p><strong>With Tsuna and Friends…<strong>

"Gokudera-kun, what are you doing?" Tsuna asked in the hushed silence. Even Mukuro and Hibari were quiet. Gokudera was kneeling beside the door, sniffing something that looked like a keyhole.

"Juudaime, this keyhole has been exposed to Sky Dying Will flames a lot of times before."

"Sky Dying Will flames?" _What is that supposed to mean? Am I supposed to…?_

Tsuna stepped up to the door and Gokudera moved back. He was simply following his intuition. He lit his Sky Ring and stuck it into the keyhole hesitantly. The moment he did so, the door swung open.

Tsuna peered in cautiously, Gokudera beside him. Yamamoto and Ryohei bent over them both to look in as well. Lambo came up to Tsuna's left and did the same. Mukuro watched them in amusement. Hibari rolled his eyes and Chrome looked on curiously.

"What are you all doing? Kufufu."

Suddenly, a green imitation of Lancia's Steel Serpent Ball flew to them and hit Tsuna squarely in the middle.

_"Doh!"_ Tsuna fell and bounced back up as if it weighed nothing. "Reborn, why did you hit _me?"_

"Don't just stand there," Reborn said to them all, purposely ignoring his student. "What—did you think there was a trap waiting for you at the doorway?"

Those who were peering in grinned sheepishly and stood straight. Yamamoto laughed and scratched his head. Once everyone was in, Hibari stood off to the side, as always.

"And a very good morning to you," Talbot greeted.

"Good morning, Talbot!" Yamamoto and Ryohei said. Lambo yawned as Gokudera said, "Yo." Mukuro snickered and Hibari ignored them. Chrome bowed.

"Good morning," Giotto said and stifled a yawn as he stood up.

"P-Primo! Good morning!"

Giotto waved a hand. "Never mind me. I'm not the main reason you're here."

"Huh?" They all went.

Giotto titled his head to Reborn.

"That's right. Primo kindly used his flame to allow me to enter this room."

_You could have just waited for me to let you in as well!_ Tsuna cried. _Then I won't have to face Hibari's beating!_ True to his thoughts, he, Gokudera, Lambo, and Ryohei were covered with bruises where the pair of tonfa met flesh. Some were even bleeding, but Ryohei healed those.

"Now—Tsuna, did you tell them to bring their things?"

"Y-Yeah…" Tsuna held out the box with gold flelks. Gokudera took out the glass vial filled with blue liquid carefully and Chrome brought out the tongs.

"Ah, that's good, very good! You got them all! Was it hard?" Talbot asked when each of them set their things on the work table. All of them sweat-dropped when they thought of it.

"You stinkin' old man! They were nothing! That stupid girl made us chase her all over the place!"

"He made us dig through everything before giving it to us!"

"That herbivore didn't know what he was doing."

All this was said at once.

"Oh? Then do you want me to give you something to _really_ complain about?" Reborn asked with a spark in his eye.

"N-No thanks!" Tsuna backed away while shaking his head.

"With these, I can get started. The thing I needed the most were the tongs. My last one crumbled right after; seems like it couldn't take the pressure of the heat after a thousand uses on acidic solutions. Sit down, everyone, sit down." They all seated on a stool, chair, _something._

The moment he sat, Tsuna began to shift and tap his finger against his knee. He frowned subconsciously and shifted again.

"Juudaime, is something the matter?" Tsuna smiled.

"I'm fine, Gokudera-kun." He rubbed his head and twiddled his fingers. Gokudera shrugged and believed in him.

"Tell me about it," Talbot requested. "I would like to know what you had to go through before showing you the next locations."

Each of them retold their own encounters. For Hibari and Chrome's, Chrome did the talking, though she was more hesitant to speak to an entire group.

They left out the part where all of them looked like the six funeral wreaths.

"Mm…" Talbot hummed. "The missions seem more unreasonable than ever. Usually, you had to find certain things that are of utmost importance and handle them with care. With the risk higher, it's much more complicated to complete them without fail; the usual percentage of success is one."

"Y-You're kidding, right?" Gokudera was unsure of whether he heard right. "It was so easy!"

"The new generation of Gatherers are either going easy on you or have nothing they really want at the moment. I'm not so sure about the ones you're going to next. They may be harder, or they may be simpler."

"Che!"

"Listen carefully," Talbot pulled out a map. "You're going to have to go over land this time. It's a long way off, so you'll take the trains.

"It goes through the large cities. You'll be getting off in the town, Salemi. Then you're going to Bivona which is in Agrigento. Your final stop is San Cataldo, in the province Caltanissetta."

Gokudera almost fell off his chair. "W-What! That's double the length from here to Termini!"

Giotto also looked worried. "Talbot, is it necessary for them to go so far off south? Our connections in Cataldo are still weak. They won't be able to get help if they need it."

"Aye, but that is where the pair of Virtual Photon Mirrors is. It's the closest, unless they are willing to go mainland. I need those. After the disruption of transferring over eight people through the worm hole, I discovered that they broke. I need to replace them with new ones."

Tsuna felt so lost with these terms. It didn't help that his mind was bouncing around his head. He turned to Gokudera who was nodding thoughtfully. His other Guardians looked just as clueless as him, so it was safe to guess that it wasn't his no-good-ness that was preventing him from understanding.

"I don't understand it," Lambo said.

"It's complicated to explain. All you need to know is that you must bring back the pair of mirrors in _perfect_ condition, otherwise this will never work."

"Okay, then what's the first thing we need to get?" Gokudera asked.

Talbot described what they needed and where to get them. As he was telling them this, Tsuna suddenly jumped and his chair toppled over.

"Tsuna, what's up?" Yamamoto asked. He saw that his friend seemed edgy this morning. Everyone else was waiting for an answer.

Tsuna laughed nervously. "Honestly, I don't know. I can't sit still. And Hibari-san's gone," he added.

"When did he leave the room?" Gokudera sprung up from his own seat.

"A while ago," Reborn said.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Tsuna cried. "He's probably looking for someone to fight!"

"I thought you knew," was Reborn's explanation.

"He's not going to find anyone to fight," Giotto said. "They're all asleep."

"Oh—Juudaime…maybe Hibari just went to take a nap somewhere?" Gokudera hit a fist into his open palm. "That guy hates being woken up…"

Tsuna's mouth made an O shape at the possibility.

"That's the safer assumption. You'll have to find him to make sure."

"Reborn! No one's crazy enough to look for Hibari-san!"

"Kufufu." _Maybe I can give him nightmares,_ Mukuro thought.

"Well, that is all I needed from all of you," Talbot concluded. "Have a safe journey. Giotto."

"Yes?" Talbot gave him an envelope.

"Here are their tickets. Please distribute them to Decimo's family once you return to the mansion." Giotto accepted them with a nod.

"I better get paired with Juudaime this time!" Gokudera growled. "And why can't I just buy tickets at a station that _didn't_ run out?"

"Yes, that _is_ another option, usually."

"Usually?"

Giotto said, "They are on a shortage of trains at the moment. Three of them crashed due to…some famiglias… I had to pull some strings to allow these tickets to be sold to us. You won't find these tickets anywhere else."

"I-It's alright, Gokudera-kun!"

"…If Juudaime says so…"

"We'll look at the tickets once we get out of Talbot's hair," Giotto muttered and led the way out with a final goodbye to Talbot. "Make sure you eat something!"

"Yar, yar!" was Talbot's absentminded reply. "Close the door behind you…"

Tsuna did as Talbot asked and went back to the mansion.

"Reborn, that meeting didn't last two minutes! Why did we have to get up so early? Now I can't go back to sleep!"

Reborn smirked. "It's because the train is leaving at six."

"That's hours away…I could have slept through lunch…"

"Six," Reborn repeated, "in the morning."

"E-Eh?" Tsuna was ready to jump up and down and complain about why they had to leave so early—hm? Jump…up and down? _Why on earth would I do that! Oh never mind…we only have an hour or so to prepare!_

"And then after we—Young Vongola, why is your face like that?" Lambo was talking to Yamamoto about details of his mission when he happened to look at Tsuna and saw that his face was twisted in an odd expression.

Tsuna shook his head as if to clear it and smiled. "Nothing…it's just that…_we have to leave by six!"_ he screeched.

Their initial shock was the same as Tsuna's, but it changed after a few minutes.

"We should have enough time, Juudiame!" Gokudera said confidently.

"That doesn't leave me much time to nap. Yare, yare…"

"_Extreme! _It's a race, Sawada!"

"Kufufufu."

Yamamoto laughed. "Fine by me! But didn't Primo's master want to fight against us?"

"Y-You're right!" Tsuna grew nervous and picked up the pace. Giotto watched him curiously but did nothing else other than that. By the time they reached the exit, they were running.

"Eto…why are we running?" Tsuna murmured, out of breath. He dimly remembered that he started it, but why would he ever support running? Hadn't he had enough of running for his life yet?

"I'll have breakfast ready for you all as you go change and pack your bags," Giotto offered.

"W-We don't want to be a bother…"

"It's fine, it's fine. The cook's awake anyways."

"S-So early?"

"Well…I began my day early today to catch up on the documents I have to look over since I took two days off in a row. I went to the kitchens to grab a snack and the cook was already in there. I'll just ask him to whip something up for you."

"Thank you so much, Primo!" Tsuna bowed and Gokudera followed his example. Yamamoto grinned.

"Haha! That helps. Thanks!"

They went their separate ways after that. Giotto watched Tsuna's running figure bound up the stairs with his Guardians. He turned to Reborn.

"Reborn, did you give Decimo something?"

"Oh? Did you notice?"

Primo nodded his head slowly.

* * *

><p>After cursing Reborn in his head a dozen times, Tsuna threw things he might need into a pack. A spare change of clothes…some money…and some food later, if he managed to find the time to go into the kitchen. He looked at the grandfather clock that was in the room: it was half an hour until six o'clock.<p>

_We might actually make it! Damn Reborn for not telling us we had to leave so early!_ He ran out his room and into the dining hall. Onido was seated at the table and so were a few of the quicker Guardians. He skidded to a halt when he remembered Yamamoto's reminder of the fight Kovato "challenged" them to. Then Tsuna shook it off.

_We don't have time for a fight! Even if we did, I won't want to be in it!_ He ran to his seat and began to gobble down whatever was placed before him. The last to arrive was Hibari, who claimed that Hibird needed something to eat. Once Hibird had his fill, the two of them left. Tsuna didn't even get a chance to ask him to stay.

"Master Kovato!" Ryohei roared halfway through his breakfast, "what are we going to _extremely_ do with the challenge!"

"_What_ challenge?"

Ryohei frowned at the answer and tried to remind the man about what he proclaimed the time they met. "That was a challenge? Hmph. I'm not foolish enough to fight against a bunch of children."

"What!" Gokudera exploded.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna warned. He downed his glass of milk and made sure everyone was ready. Giotto cleared his throat.

"About your tickets." This got everyone's attention. He held eight tickets in one hand, the blank side facing himself as he showed them. "I am in possession of three which go to Salemi, your first stop; two for Bovina, and three for San Cataldo, your last stop before returning. These tickets can bring you back, so don't lose them."

"I'm staying with Juudaime!" Gokudera declared before anyone else could say anything.

"How are we going to chose where to go?" Lambo asked.

"You won't be choosing," Reborn said ominously. "I will do it for you." Tsuna tapped his feet to the floor impatiently. All the while he was looking at the clock. Twenty minutes left. How far was the train station?

"How is this going to work?" he asked quickly. Reborn smirked. One reason was because he probably had a strange plan in mind. The other…

"Mukuro, Gokudera, and Yamamoto will be going to Salemi."

"Wha—_Reborn-san!_ Juudaime needs his right-hand man beside him for this!" Gokudera protested.

"Shut up," Reborn ordered. He continued. "Ryohei and Hibari will be going to Bovina."

"You're kidding, right? How can you put the most anti-social one of us with the loudest one of us, Reborn?" Tsuna squeaked. He pulled at his hair and stood from his seat. Oh, this doesn't sound good._ I hope onii-san won't make too much of a fuss as they go! He'll be bitten to death by Hibari!_

"You all have to learn to work with each other. The more uncooperative you are, the more I will mash you up.

"Tsuna will be with Lambo and Chrome."

Chrome bowed in her chair and Lambo took the news calmly. He didn't mind the outcome. It was better than staying with the hot headed Gokudera day _and_ night.

Gokudera sulked in a corner, since it was obvious Reborn wasn't going to change his mind. Giotto shrugged and handed out the tickets. He sympathised with Gokudera, but there was nothing he could do since this was the tenth generation family, not his own. And he saw a bit of sense in this organisation.

Another five minutes passed and Hibari was still a no show. Ryohei held their tickets, but they weren't going anywhere until Hibari arrived.

"Tsuna, go find him."

"Hiie! Why me!"

"You're the boss." Tsuna groaned and ran off to find his Cloud Guardian. _It's always me. I should have guessed!_

* * *

><p>Alaude was sleeping in his room on the fourth floor. The things in his room were mostly black or a dark velvet red. His large four-poster bed was to the side, where he could see any attackers before they could see him.<p>

His breathing continued to be slow and steady when one of his doors opened a crack. He knew that it wasn't one of his colleagues since they knew better than to just walk in his room or to wake him up. It must be that blood thirsty child that reminded him of his younger self.

The footsteps were muffled because of the carpet placed on the floor, but Alaude heard it as clear as if he were stomping around as hard as he could. _He still has a lot to learn,_ Alaude thought to himself.

The footsteps stopped at the foot of his bed.

To a normal person, they wouldn't have heard it, but Alaude noticed the rustle of clothing and that was all the warning he needed to avoid the tonfa which was meant for his head. They stood on opposite sides of the bed, waiting for the other to make the first move. When Hibari didn't, Alaude said, "You have to go."

"Not before I bite you to death."

"A child like you won't be able to fight against me. I refuse to even let you try. Leave."

Hibari's eyes turned to slits and he released the annoyance he withheld for a very long time. The air around him fired up. It held a shade of purple and the two tonfa were covered with Cloud Flames.

"I'll bite you to death!" He leaped over the bed and took a swing at Alaude's head again but the man took a step back graciously, wasting no movement. He used a foot to trip Hibari but he was quick on his feet as well. He jumped into the air. As Hibari landed he used his left tonfa to swipe at Alaude before standing to charge. Hibari was irritated beyond belief when the man didn't fight back. He continued to stare at Hibari with that cool, bored gaze.

He _will_ make him fight.

* * *

><p>Tsuna wandered around their rooms, wondering how he was going to find Hibari and not be bitten to death. When he reached Hibari's door, he put his ear to it, trying to listen for Hibari. Then he sighed.<p>

"I'm not going to hear Hibari-san, even if he's in there," Tsuna told himself. He knocked and prepared himself to run. He knocked his head and knocked a second time, as loud as he dared. He frowned and jumped from foot to foot. When Hibari didn't open the door to bite him to death a second later, he twisted the knob and looked inside. Hibari wasn't in there.

"Herbivore! Herbivore!" Hibird announced. By now Tsuna was used to a mere bird calling him a herbivore.

'Hibird!" Tsuna walked into the room to the window sill, where Hibird was perched. "Do you know where Hibari-san is? Why aren't you with him?" He felt foolish talking to a bird, but why the heck not? This was the bird which was taught their school song by Hibari, and helped them before in the past.

Hibird chirped. "Alaude! Alaude!"

Tsuna scratched his head. "Alaude? Why are you saying Alaude's name? It's not like I'm him, or he's in the room." He turned around to be sure, just in case.

Hibird flew into the air and out the window.

"Hibari! Alaude! Fight!"

"EEEH! At a time like this! We have to leave in like—EEP! We have to leave _right now!" _He bolted out the room and made his way to the next story up. Instantly, he heard thumps coming from Alaude's room just to his right. When something crashed, he opened the door.

"Hibari-san! We have to leave!" He said anxiously and wide eyed. _Oh, I'm such an idiot!_

He scanned the room. There was much less mess than he thought there would be with two dangerous Guardians in the same room. The only things which seemed unorganised were the bed and the smashed vase in the room.

Hibari stopped his attack and glared at Tsuna. He moves back slightly. But the knowing that Reborn will shoot him if Hibari wasn't on the train overrode his fear. He stepped forwards. Hibari cocked an eyebrow.

"Reborn says we have to go."

"The carnivore?"

Tsuna nodded and his finger twitched towards his pocket. Hibari saw this and smirked.

"Hibari! Hibari!" Hibird landed on his head and Hibari rolled his eyes upwards. He began to sing the school's song, reminding Hibari why they needed to get on the train. They couldn't leave the herbivores to be responsible for the things that will return them to Namimori. He extinguished the flames on his tonfa and put them away. He looked at Tsuna who tensed. He sniffed and looked at Alaude.

"I'll let you off this time…but I _will_ bite you to death."

Alaude snorted. Tsuna gulped nervously and shifted his weight to his other leg. _Can we get going?_

Hibari turned and jumped out the window. It was as if Tsuna's heart jumped into his mouth.

"Hibari-san!" He dashed to the window and looked down. "That's four floors!" Hibari was gone.

"Hey."

"EEP!" He turned to face the first generation Cloud Guardian. "H-Hai…?"

"Get out."

Tsuna was more than glad to oblige. He ran all the way down to the main entrance, where his family was waiting.

"Everyone!"

"Juudaime! Did you find that skylark?" Gokudera seemed to have recovered from his depression.

"A-Ah, he went ahead. Let's go!" He picked up his bag and tossed it over a shoulder and ran to where the carriage was waiting for them. They wasted no time for farewells. Reborn made it clear that if they didn't leave that instant, they were going to miss their ride.

But the inevitable happened.

"Hiiie! You're joking right! That's impossible! How can the wheel axles just some off!" Tsuna panicked as Reborn narrowed his eyes and cocked his gun. The driver got so frightened they couldn't make heads or tails of what he was saying.

"You bastard! Do you know that we're on a tight schedule!" Gokudera pulled the front of the man's shirt.

"I-I'm sorry! It was from when we arrived at the Vongola Mansion so quickly! It couldn't take it! I-I'll have a new one ready in just a moment!" He ran off.

"Maa, maa! There's no reason to get mad at him, ne?"

"We'll just run _to the extreme!_"

'Shut it, Turf-Top! You can't just run there!"

"What was that, Octopus-Head!"

"Mou," Tsuna sighed and face palmed. Then he turned to Reborn. "Reborn, how the hell did you choose our groups? They seem so random! Onii-san and Hibari-san are clashing! It will never work out!"

"Are you questioning my judgement?" Reborn asked darkly. Now, the gun was aiming at Tsuna.

"EEP! I—no! I'm not!"

"Hmph." The gun was put away, much to Tsuna's relief. "For your reason, I am balancing it."

"Eh?"

"I'm putting the weak one with the strong ones."

"O-Oh…" _That's cruel to just call Lambo weak!_ "Wait…there's something else other than that…isn't there?" Tsuna asked cautiously. Reborn grinned victoriously.

"Your Hyper Intuition is getting better. My hard tutoring is finally paying off." _More like torture!_ "As for the other reason, you will find out later."

After that talk, the driver had the other carriage the family used ready for them.

Mukuro decided that he didn't want to ride with them, so he left to go to the station through the mist. Chrome followed him.

"Why does the stupid cow get to be with Juudaime?" Gokudera muttered. Tsuna glanced at Lambo, who was sleeping peacefully. He smiled.

"It's fine, Gokudera-kun. He's not that much trouble when he's adult Lambo."

"That's true…but he's still weak!"

"Well…he's not weak, Gokudera-kun…and…"

"And…?" Yamamoto and Ryohei listened, interested.

"I uh…think it's better if Lambo is with me," he confessed. "It's not that I don't believe in his abilities to protect himself or anything, but…I'll still be worried. I have a bad feeling about this trip. I hope it won't be as bad as I think it will be."

"Juudaime…"

"Tsuna…"

"Hm…I don't understand what's going on, but we will pass this challenge _TO THE EXTREME!"_ the shouting woke Lambo from his nap and he looked irritated at Ryohei.

"Yare, yare, can't I get some peace and quiet here?"

* * *

><p>It took them ten minutes to reach the station, which was pretty good. Gokudera had to threaten to bomb the driver for that to happen though, and the driver wasn't about to joke around with a boy who held a lit dynamite to his face.<p>

The train's whistle blew and the conductor called out, _"All aboard!"_

"Thank you!" Tsuna shouted to the driver as they ran on.

They found their seats in the private quarters.

"Wow…" Tsuna whispered. There were plush carpets and portraits hanging. They were far away from the other compartments, so all was quiet. There were doors leading to separate rooms. He saw that there were two beds per room, and there were four rooms, just enough for them. Lambo walked into the first one to their left.

"I'm going to be in here…don't bother me…" He shut the door.

Gokudera snorted.

They walked on and there was a larger area which was for lounging.

"Is this really a train?" Tsuna wondered out loud.

"Kufufufu. Of course it is," Mukuro said. Tsuna jumped in shock. Mukuro was sitting in one of the cushioned seats beside the window. Beside him was a plate of snacks and a fruit punch.

"When did you have the time to get those!"

"Kufufufufu."

"Answer Juudaime's question, you p—" Yamamoto covered Gokudera's mouth with sweat rolling down his face.

"Maa, Gokudera! There's no need to um, get rude!"

"Boss," Chrome said. "The train will be moving soon…"

"Huh?"

Tsuna fell to the floor due to the train, moving. "Gaaah!"

"Juudaime!" Gokudera's arms turned into windmills and he knocked over Yamamoto. He hit the wall with a grunt. Gokudera grabbed onto the chair bolted to the floor and steadied himself. If they weren't so surprised, this wouldn't have happened.

Tsuna wasn't as lucky. He fell and somersaulted twice before hitting the far wall and a stack of literature toppling onto his head. He groaned and sat up. Once the train picked up its speed and it stayed constant, he had no problem moving.

"Hiie! I knocked down the bookshelf!" He sprang up and began to quickly put them back.

"Juudaime…are you alright?" Gokudera asked worriedly. Tsuna picked up more books form the ground and looked at Gokudera.

"Oh, yes, I'm okay! Perfectly fine!"

Yamamoto blinked. Then he shrugged.

"Do you need help?" Gokudera asked.

"Mm, no I'm almost done…" Gokudera went to help anyways, as well as to see what they had in the collection. His eyes widened when he found a book on UMAs. He snatched it off the shelf and began to read right there. Tsuna watched with an amused smile on his face.

"Gokudera-kun, why don't you read on a couch or something?"

Gokudera barely registered the words and nodded. He slowly made his way to the couch and sprawled on it, taking up all three spots.

Yamamoto laughed at Gokudera's actions and took a seat by the table and rang a bell for an order. Tsuna continued to stand, not really wanting to sit. He looked out the window on the opposite side. He opened it and stuck his head out. Instantly, his hair and the skin on his face were pushed back. He pulled himself back in and felt his face.

"Wow…blah."

Yamamoto laughed cheerfully.

"Where's Hibari-san?" Tsuna looked into all the rooms but didn't see him.

"Kufufu. He went up the moment he knew we had to share rooms."

"Up?"

"Outside," Chrome said. "Hibari-san said he was going to be on the roof."

"Hiie! Won't he get blown off!"

"That will be good," Mukuro mused. He drank the rest of his drink and stood. "Maybe I should kick him off."

"Hiie!"

Mukuro walked to the end of their compartment and opened the door. They were instantly blasted with the loudness of the train moving over the tracks. Mukuro stepped onto the platform and closed it. Tsuna ran to it just in time to see Mukuro climb up the ladder to the top.

"Oh, this is bad!" Tsuna cried. "What should I do? Follow? Stay?" When he heard weapons clashing and thought of all the bloody things that could come of it, he pulled at his hair.

Ever since they first fought with each other, Hibari held an everlasting grudge against Mukuro. This wasn't going to be the last time this happened.

"Jeez!" Tsuna growled and put on his gloves. He opened the door.

"Oh, Tsuna! What are you doing?" He looked back at Yamamoto with orange eyes.

"I'm going to stop them from fighting." Tsuna closed the door firmly shut behind him and launched into the air not even using the ladder.

When he landed on all fours on the top, he found both his Guardians near the end of the train, fighting. He flew to them and tried to talk them out of it.

"Mukuro, Hibari-san, it's useless to fight at the moment!" They didn't hear him.

He repeated it louder.

"Kufufu. But this passes the boredom."

"I will bite him to death."

"Don't bother us, Tsunayoshi." Mukuro flung snakes at Tsuna from midair. Tsuna whacked on away with his arm and fried another. There were around twenty of them. He jumped away and one flew in the air with its mouth wide open, sharp teeth sticking out. Tsuna stopped it just in time and threw it overboard.

One tangled his legs and he lost his balance. He regained it by using his flames. He swiped at the snakes quickly, a stream of soft flames left in the air. The snakes burned.

Once they were all gone, he flew in between Hibari and Mukuro, who were charging at each other.

He extinguished his flame when they stopped.

"Hibari-san, Mukuro! You can't just fight here. And…" _A family doesn't fight against each other so much!_

"And why not?"

"We-Well, because you'll make the rest of us worry over the two of you," he said, looking at them both. There was a small pause.

"I don't need a herbivore to worry over me."

"T-Too bad! I don't want you to fight against each other! And Mukuro, there _are_ people who worry for you as well, like me and Chrome."

Mukuro closed his mouth, startled. It turned into a wry smile. "Kufufu. Alright. I'll listen to you this time. You're turning out to be very fun…just more for me to look forward to when I take control over your body."

Tsuna sweat-dropped. Mukuro went back down. He let out a breath and faced Hibari—no, a _tonfa._

"Ow!"

"Herbivore…are you replacing that pineapple head? Fine by me."

Tsuna ducked and ran to the ladder before the prefect could react. "Hiie! Sorry, Hibari-san! I'm sorry!" Tsuna slipped and fell down. "HIIE!"

Back in the safety of the train, he flopped down on a couch beside Gokudera.

"Juudaime?" He sat up. He was wearing his glasses. "What happened?"

"Ah…it was nothing."

"Now what am I to do for the rest of the ride?" Mukuro sighed. Chrome looked around to see if there was anything Mukuro could pass the time with.

"Eto…" Tsuna said. Mukuro spotted a chess set placed in the middle of the coffee table.

"Oya? A strategy game."

"Tch! I can beat you easily in chess," Gokudera snorted. Mukuro eyed him calculatingly.

"We'll see about that. Kufufu."

"C-Chess?" Tsuna said. "How do you play chess?"

"Juudaime!" Gokudera was suddenly excited. "I'll teach you as I beat that bastard!" He pointed to Mukuro. A vein popped in Mukuro's forehead. He sat down on the black side. Gokudera took the pale, brown coloured ones. Tsuna sat cautiously beside him as if his seat would blow up.

"You're on."

"Oh! What's this?" Yamamoto, Ryohei and Chrome stepped forward and surrounded the table.

"Extreme competition! Go Octopus-Head! Go Pineapple-Head!"

"What did you just call me?" Gokudera and Mukuro glared. Ryohei grinned.

"I wonder who's going to win!"

"Haha! I don't usually play chess. My Pops taught me and we play once in a while."

"Fine," Mukuro declared. "We'll have a competition. Whoever wins has to be the loser's slave for the rest of the train ride!"

"Deal!" Gokudea shouted.

"Who's going to win—Mukuro, or Gokudera-kun?" Tsuna said. "They both seem evenly matched!"

As the scenery around them flew by, they played. Yamamoto brought food for all of them. The spectators got comfortable.

Chess was usually boring, but with the competitive auras rising from both of Mukuro and Gokudera's inner selves, it was hard to say so.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-23rd**_


	15. Kill Me Now Pt 1

**Chapter Fifteen**

"They're so close…" Tsuna muttered to Yamamoto, who laughed. Mukuro and Gokudera both had their king and queen along with a rook. Gokudera had another rook and a pawn whereas Mukuro had two knights and a bishop. The rest of the pieces were already killed off.

"Oops! Gokudera's last pawn was just taken!"

"Shut up! I can't concentrate when you're talking!" Gokudera glared at Yamamoto. Tsuna smiled slightly.

"A-Ahaha…we didn't mean to," Tsuna said. "Oh look, Mukuro just moved his piece!" Gokudera's focus was back on the game. Mukuro just moved his queen forwards two spaces. Gokudera glared at it, and then at Mukuro, trying to see in his eyes where he was moving next or what he was planning. Then Gokudera went into his own world and focused on strategy. He looked at the board again and could suddenly see ten spaces ahead.

Gokudera smirked. "Che! You moved the wrong piece."

"Oya? I don't think so."

Gokudera continued to smirk.

"Da-dun~!" Yamamoto flew up from his seat and waved his arms theatrically.

"Yamamoto?" Tsuna questioned. "What are you doing?"

"I'm cheering them on! The game's almost over, so here's the climax!"

"A-Ah…"

"Come on! Let's cheer, Tsuna!" Yamamoto pulled Tsuna to his feet.

"Baseball freak, what are you doing?"

"Come on Tsuna! This way first!" Yamamoto went "Yaa!" and raised his right leg and arm. He balanced on his remaining leg and had a foolish expression on his face.

"Come on, Tsuna!"

"Eto…Y-Yaa…?" Tsuna copied Yamamoto.

He laughed. "That's the spirit! Now..da-dun!" He went on his other leg and Tsuna followed, letting lose a chuckle.

"And then," Tsuna said. "Dun-da~!" He jumped in the air as high as he could. Yamamoto did the same.

"_Extreme_ cheering!" Ryohei said and also stood to cheer; although his way was much louder.

Gokudera twitched. There was no way he could concentrate with all this noise. But his boss was cheering—cheering for _him_ (ignoring Mukuro)!

He went back to the board and blocked out all other sounds other than his own thoughts.

_Juudaime! I won't waste your efforts!_

"Hup!" They dropped to the floor and jumped back up. They did some more weird things and Chrome cocked her head.

"Boss is so out of character…"

"Do your best!" Tsuna and Yamamoto cheered.

"_EXTREME!"_

"They're too noisy," Mukuro said. Gokudera glared and cocked a brow.

"So, you can't concentrate in the loud environment? Che. You suck!"

Mukuro gave Gokudera a narrowed eye look before breaking in to a sly smile. "Kufufu. No, I'm just calling them," he paused, "annoying."

"Maa, maa! We're just in the spirit! You should be too!" Yamamoto laughed and swung an arm around and Tsuna mirrored his movements.

Mukuro moved the bishop and Gokudera "gack'd".

"Damn you… how did you…!"

Mukuro had just put him in a fix. "Kufufufufufu, you forget that I can read people easily and I can manipulate them. It's your fault for not remembering."

His opponent twitched. Gokudera's hand went to move a piece but he stopped and examined the board again. Everyone leaned in to see what he was seeing. But not being Gokudera or Mukuro, they had no idea whatsoever of what was going on.

"Tch! I'm not going to fall for that trick." Gokudera moved another piece, which was probably the safer route out of all the rest. Mukuro's face fell when he saw his plan didn't work. He eyed Gokudera, who was concentrating on the board, trying to see i f he could read his moments. Gokudera didn't notice Mukuro watching him intently before he made his next move. Mukuro chuckled inwardly.

"Tsuna…do you get what's going on?" Yamamoto asked quietly.

Tsuna shook his head. "I have no idea…"

"That doesn't_ extremely_ matter!" Ryohei roared and the area around him became so hot it was hard not to imagine the sun shining in their faces. "We still need to cheer on them to the _extreme_!"

Tsuna and Yamamoto grinned and jumped to their feet.

"Don't you think Boss is a little…_hyper?_ Chrome asked quietly to the two playing. The others were busy having fun cheering them on.

"What are you talking about?" Gokudera snapped. He was ticked off that anyone was suggesting that something was wrong with Juudaime, even if he _did_ think that… "Nothing is wrong with Juudaime!"

"Ah!" Ryohei agreed. "Sawada's always this _extreme!"_ Yamamoto laughed and agreed. Chrome nodded silently. Mukuro narrowed his eyes. He certainly didn't like anyone making a fool out of Nagi.

"Don't worry, Nagi. I'll win this game. Kufufufu…"

"To hell with that!"

_You don't know that I already see through you, kufufufu,_ Mukuro thought and smirked.

Gokudera smirked inwardly.

_I have him now._

"Go!" Tsuna and Yamamoto cheered.

By now, the game was almost over. Mukuro moved a piece and released it. His smile froze when he looked at the board again.

_Damn…_

He did something wrong. Gokudera snickered and…

"Checkmate."

Tsuna and Yamamoto weren't really paying attention and only heard those words five seconds after they were said.

"What! Amazing!" Tsuna said in awe. "Gokudera, you're really good!"

"Haha! I face winner!" Yamamoto grinned.

"HAH! Now you have to be my slave for the rest of the ride!" Gokudera smirked victoriously. Mukuro glowered at him.

"Fair's fair," Tsuna reminded him. "You also shook hands on it."

One of Mukuro's veins twitched. That was true… "No."

"What!" Gokudera slammed his hands to the table. "Sore loser!"

"Am not," Mukuro snapped. "You tricked me!"

Gokudera grinned. "You fell right into my trap! Who was it that said you had to become the winner's slave? And who said that they were good at playing mind games? You're not the only person in the room who can think up of a strategy!"

"What happened anyways?" Tsuna asked, jumping slightly in case any one of them exploded.

"Juudaime! You want to know?" Gokudera smiled genuinely at his boss, glad that he was curious. Tsuna's mouth twitched.

"I guess?"

"I'll tell you in private later! I'm not going to let these idiots listen to my grand plan!" He waved off the others. Mukuro glared daggers while Chrome shrugged off the comment. Yamamoto and Ryohei cocked their heads in confusion and also shrugged.

Tsuna sweat-dropped at their lack of reaction.

Suddenly, something interrupted them. It was a sound that they were all familiar with.

POOF!

They looked at each other.

"Was that…" Tsuna trailed off.

"But it's Adult Lambo…" Gokudera said slowly. "He has never used the bazooka…except that time in the Ring Battle…"

"Then…?" Yamamoto cocked his head. He winced along with the rest of them.

"WHAAA! LAMBO-SAN IS HUNGRY!" They heard a voice scream at the top of his lungs. Tsuna ran to the door and slid it open with such force that the slam made Lambo stop crying.

"Tsuna!" He cried and latched onto the teen. Tsuna stepped back in surprise with the younger Lambo clinging onto his shirt. He supported the young child and patted his head.

"Lambo! What happened? Where were you? What happened to Adult Lambo?" Lambo stopped his snivelling.

"Oi, answer Juudaime's question," Gokudera scowled.

"Lambo-san was at a birthday party! They were just about to eat cake!"

"Did he go back to the present time, or ten years after the present time?" Tsuna wondered. Yamamoto laughed and shrugged. He picked up Lambo and raised him over his head.

"Whaahahaha!" Lambo laughed.

"Well! Let's get you some food, ne?" Yamamoto gave Lambo a piggy back ride and off they went.

"That dumb cow," Gokudera muttered and tsked.

The young attendants on the train cooed and squealed at Lambo's cuteness. They were more subtle with Yamamoto, but they could all tell that they were staring at him more. Tsuna and Gokudera were peering out the window separating their compartment with the rest of the train.

"Now that Yamamoto's not here…what do we do? Being Lambo, it's going to take a few hours to fill his stomach."

They went back to the room. Tsuna paced around, worrying about what would happen later on in the hunt. Gokudera watched him nervously. Tsuna suddenly stopped when he felt his friends' stares at him. He cursed. _I'm making them worry…_

He calmed himself and plastered a smile on his face before turning around. "I think I'm going to find something to eat as well. All that moving made me hungry!"

"Great idea, Sawada! We can order things and have it brought in here!" Ryohei stood and went to yell at the attendants.

Tsuna stopped him just in time. "O-Onii-san! May…maybe you should…stay and wait…"

"What's wrong?" Ryohei asked.

"Um," Tsuna grinned widely with his eyes shut tight. "Ahahah…" _How am I going to tell him that he'll scare everyone!_

"Just stay here, Turf-Top! Juudaime said that, so you need to obey his orders!"

"What did you say, Octopus Head!"

Tsuna used this chance to slip out and look for Yamamoto and Lambo. He found them alright.

"Yamamoto!"

"Hey Tsuna!"

Lambo was pigging out at the table with a sheepish Yamamoto standing beside him. Tsuna's steps faltered when he saw the plates piled beside the little kid.

"L-Lambo…isn't that enough…?" Tsuna gulped. He pulled out his ticket and turned it around. First class, again. How inconspicuous are they going to seem to other people? They can order all they want, but at this rate, he was afraid there won't be enough food left for everyone else on the train.

"L-Lambo, you have to stop eating!"

"I don't want to!"

"Lambo!"

"Maa, maa, Tsuna! He'll get full soon enough! He's eating slower now!"

Tsuna glanced at the speed Lambo was eating and sweatdropped. _He was eating faster than that before I came?_

"Anyways…we're planning on eating in our place," he thrust his thumb at their own lounge.

Yamamoto nodded. "Okay! Do we know what we want to eat?"

Tsuna shrugged. "I guess anything's fine…"

"Leave it to me!" Yamamoto gave Tsuna to thumbs up.

"Uh…" Tsuna was wondering whether Yamamoto was only going to order healthy foods. "Maybe we should just get someone to come in and write down the order…that way, we eat only what we want?"

"Haha! That can work too!"

"Right." Tsuna turned and knocked on the kitchen door. It opened and a tall young man peered down at him.

"Hm, you want something, kid?"

"We would like to order some food please," Tsuna said and pointed to their area. The man looked at the door, then at the kid in front of him. That room was reserved for VIP guests, so okay…

"Sure. Be right there. George!" He called to someone within. "Come here and follow this young man to get his order!"

"Okay!" A voice shouted back. Running footsteps approached and a teenager appeared. Brown hair, Italian features, about Tsuna's height. He saluted casually.

"Hello!"

"Hello," Tsuna said politely. He led the way back to Yamamoto.

Yamamoto opened the door to their compartment and shut it. He turned back around and smiled at Tsuna and the other teen nervously.

"Yamamoto? Is something wrong?"

"Uh…ahahah…you see…"

"Um, are we going in?" George asked meekly. Tsuna scratched his head.

"Yamamoto, what's wrong?"

"Eto…look yourself." Tsuna walked past Yamamoto with a weird glance and grabbed the handle. He held his breath and twisted. Opening, he stuck his head and and screamed. It shut again.

"Are…you okay?" George asked tentatively.

"I-I'm fine!" Tsuna squeaked. How are we going to get him in without him being freaked out with Mukuro's illusion? He screamed in his head and thought at high speed.

"P-Please wait out here…"

George shrugged. "Okay."

Tsuna darted inside and ignored the gore and blood on the walls as well as broken dolls staring at him as he passed by.

_I don't see them, I don't see them, I don't see them…I don't see them…_ He ran through the hall and reached the room.

"Gokudera-kun! Mukuro! Chrome! Onii-san!" No one replied. The room was filled with a bloody mess.

"Mukuro! Come on! I know it's an illusion!" Tsuna shouted into the air. His heart pounded against his ribs. He was pretty sure it was Mukuro…

"Kufufufu…that was no fun…" Everything turned into cherry blossoms and flowed around. Mukuro and the others emerged from the shadows.

"I told you that Juudaime will see through that!" Gokudera said triumphantly. Tsuna twitched. _I almost didn't._

"EXTREME!"

"A-Anyways…we're going to order food! Could you all behave yourselves?"

"Don't we always?" Mukuro asked in retort. "You sound like a mother lecturing her kids."

Tsuna's face turned red with embarrassment. "Arg! Just…just don't do anything that can scare people off!" He ran back and opened the door for Yamamoto. "Huff…huff…okay, it's safe to come in now…huff…" Yamamoto gave them a cheery grin and followed in after Tsuna.

"Kufufu. I see you brought us some prey," Mukuro snickered. He was sitting on a couch with his legs sprawled on the table gracefully. Chrome sat politely beside him. Gokudera was lying on a long couch reading the same book he was before. He saw the title: Wonders of the World.

Ryohei was…outside…on the platform.

"So, what will all you be having?" George asked.

"Herbivore." Tsuna eep'd at the voice. Slowly, he turned his head towards the teen, dreading the thought that Hibari was disturbed.

"H-Hibari-san—we're sorry to disturb you!" Hibari glanced at him and turned to Mukuro.

Tsuna let out a sigh of relief. _He ignored me…thank god!_

"Using illusions on the train is forbidden."

"Kufufufu. What are you going to do then?"

"Don't provoke him!" Tsuna yelped.

"I'll bite you to death."

George cleared his throat and the tense atmosphere disappeared. "Excuse me, sirs, are you ordering anything?"

"Kufufufu. Yes." Mukuro told the boy a list of things he wanted. George hurriedly wrote them down. Then the rest of them ordered.

Yamamoto's orders all included a lot of milk, like milk jelly, milk pasta, and the sort. Lambo practically ordered everything on the menu, but Tsuna intervened.

Gokudera wasn't hungry and Chrome shook her head as well. Tsuna gave his order after some thought, and then it was Hibari's turn.

Hibari was overwhelmed by the crowd that was gathering. And the Sakura petals that were lying around… He wanted to bite them all to death. His eyes narrowed and Tsuna bit the inside of his own cheek.

"Hibari! Hibairi!" Hibird cheeped. Hibari turned his attention to the little yellow bird.

"What?"

Hibird gave him a look that said he was hungry. Hibari snorted. With that reply, Hibird flew from his perch on Hibari's shoulder and flew around George, who was now amazed. Hibari walked back outside. He would rather get out than fight them with a bunch of Sakura lying around. After a moment, everyone who was holding their breath began breathing again.

"Hahaha! That was a close one!" Yamamoto laughed. Tsuna cracked a smile.

George left and was back in just five minutes with everything they ordered.

"No food fight this time," Tsuna said slowly after George closed the door.

"Oya? You just gave me a good idea..." Mukuro smirked and stabbed his food.

"I mean it! No food fights on the train!"

"Gyapaa! Lambo-san listens to no one!" Lambo launched a meatball at Tsuna face. Luckily, with all the hectic training Reborn made him do, he managed to avoid a near hit. Instead, it hit an unsuspected Gokudera. Tsuna was half bent. Yamamoto had his spoon halfway to his mouth. Ryohei had a mouthful. Mukuro and Chrome simply watched Gokudera's face as his hand went to his head and picked out the meatball.

"You stupid cow!" Was the first thing he said and slammed Lambo's face into the table, making a dent.

_Oh no,_ Tsuna thought. "Lambo, are you alright?" He knelt to pick Lambo up.

"L-Lambo-san hurts!" He sniffled. "But I'll keep calm…" he said before exploding into a fountain of tears and snot. Tsuna held Lambo an arms-length away.

"Gak! Get away from Juudaime you brat!"

"Hie, Gokudera-kun, no!"

"Maa, maa!"

"Kufufu!"

"Boss…"

"_EXTREME CALMING DOWN!_

_**!#$%^&*!**_

Half an hour later, the room was in shambles. The food on the table wasn't even recognisable. Burned, soaked, crushed…boiled…anything.

Tsuna, Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Lambo were on the floor. Mukuro was nowhere to be seen and Chrome was on her knees with her head down on the carpet. She let out a breath. Who could've known that keeping a child happy could take so much hard work?

"You…if you try that again…" Gokudera said to Lambo tiredly.

"Nnn…Zzzzz…"

Tsuna sweatdropped at Lambo's reaction to Gokudera's half hearted threat.

"Hahaha…but it was good exercise!"

"Idiot."

_Reborn…_ Tsuna looked up at the ceiling on the moving train. _Why did you have to make me the one to stay on the train the longest?_

* * *

><p>A few hours later, they had nothing to do. Before, Tsuna tried a game of chess with Yamamoto. After figuring that both of them were no good at the game, they went on to other things. Lambo went to hunt for more food.<p>

"How about we play I Spy?" Yamamoto suggested.

Gokudera groaned. "Can't you think of something better to do!"

"Haha, it was a good suggestion," Yamamoto grinned and scratched the back of his head. Gokudera snorted.

"Rock paper scissors?"

"That's even worse!"

"I'm leaving," Mukuro said and stood. Gokudera smirked.

"Not so fast. As my slave, you can only do what I tell you to do."

"What…"

"Maa, maa, Mukuro!" Yamamoto said cheerfully. "Don't be a sore loser!"

"I'm not!" Mukuro snapped and shut his mouth.

Gokudera grinned. "I know a way to pass the time," he declared. Tsuna looked up.

"Oh?"

"Mukuro!"

"What?" He answered irritably.

"I order you to…" Mukuro wasn't going to like this one bit. "Admit that your hairstyle looks like a pineapple!"

Chrome choked on her drink and glanced up in surprise. Mukuro glared at Gokudera.

"You want me to what…"

"Admit that your hairstyle looks like a pineapple!"

Mukuro looked as though he was going to tell Gokudera to jump off a cliff and die. He looked around and saw that everyone was looking at him expectantly. Tsuna was shifting and trying to keep a grin off his face.

"Oi, oi, as my slave, you have to do it!" Gokudera said and whacked a dynamite stick against the wall with an evil smile on his face. Mukuro glowered at him.

"Mukuro," Tsuna said, "you were the one who made up the rule, so you have to respect them!"

"I don't have to," he retorted.

"Of course you do!" Ryohei said. "A man always keeps his word TO THE _EXTREME!"_ Mukuro twitched. "So you're not a man if you can't keep a promise!"

"Kufufufu…where did that idiotic logic come from?" Mukuro demanded with a vein ready to burst.

"It's true! Master Pao Pao drilled it into my brain!"

Tsuna shrank back. _No kidding…why would Reborn do something like that?_

Mukuro, not standing being lowered from his standards, grumpily admitted it.

"Louder!" Gokudera demanded. Tsuna bit the palm of his hand.

"MY HAIRSTYLE LOOKS LIKE A PINEAPPLE!" Mukuro shouted at them. Tsuna bit down hard. He managed to stop the giggles from coming out, but only for five seconds.

Tsuna burst out laughing and rolled onto the floor, clutching his stomach.

"Haha! See? That wasn't so hard!" Yamamoto laughed.

"When we're done with this, you're a dead man…" Mukuro threatened Gokudera, who smirked.

"Until then…you're still my slave!"

"Now what, Octopus Head!"

"Hmph! Can't exhaust all the good jokes. I'll save some more for later!" He thumped his fist.

"OKAY!"

"Oi, Pineapple Head! Get Juudaime a drink!"

"I'm not thirsty, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna managed to say. He weakly climbed back onto the couch and a weak smile played on his lips.

"Juudaime, are you sure? He'll do it!"

Mukuro glared. "I won't do it."

"Yes you will, you disgraceful bastard!"

"Mukuro-sama…do you want to trade places?" Chrome questioned. Mukuro looked at her worried expression. He smiled.

"Kufufufu. No. I'm fine, Nagi. You can stay where you are."

"Is there _nothing_ we can do?" Tsuna pulled his hair and flung himself around after he regained his energy and was bored again.

"Don't worry, Juudaime! I have another idea to pass the time!"

"Eh?" Tsuna looked sceptically at Gokudera. Mukuro also raised an eyebrow. Ryohei shrugged.

"As long as it's _extreme,_ I'm fine with it!"

"Of course it'll be extreme!" Gokudera snapped. "Everyone grab a seat!"

"O…kay…?" They were all seated anyways.

Tsuna put his hands on both arms of the couch and leaned back, ready for whatever Gokudera was about to throw at him.

Chrome seated on the one next to Mukuro and Ryohei sat alert in his own chair.

"Now…." Gokudera's back was facing them and Tsuna's gut told him that something weird was going to happen…again. His friend turned back around with his reading glasses and tied back hair. He had a pointing stick in one hand and an open book laying in his other.

Tsuna groaned inwardly.

"I've noticed that your knowledge with UMAs is small," he directed a glare at Ryohei and Mukuro. Tsuna laughed softly and nervously. He knew _nothing_ about them.

"Okay, let's start with what they stand for. Mukuro—give me a white board." Mukuro glared.

"What makes you think I have one?"

"Use your illusions!"

"Gokudera-kun! Are you sure that's a good idea? Hibari might come down and bite us all to death for letting Mukuro use illusions!"

"Hai, Juudaime," Gokudera nodded. Then he had another thought. "Go find one! There should be one around here somewhere. I saw it when we came in." Mukuro grumpily stood up and went looking for it. Gokudera waited with his hands crossed and a foot tapping. All the while, Mukuro had a dangerous aura surrounding him. Tsuna and Yamamoto were sweating bullets.

"Oi, Octopus head! What's a UMA!"

"I'll tell you later! First, just grab a pencil and paper for note taking."

"Notes!" Ryohei shouted. "How do you take notes?"

Gokudera threw a pencil at Ryohei's head. "You take notes by writing down things you hear that are important!"

"But we're not in school, Gokudera!" Yamamoto said laughing. "Wait…maybe I should call you Gokudera-sensei!"

"Baka! Stop playing around!"

Tsuna laughed.

"Juudaime?"

"Oh…nothing…it's nothing…"

Mukuro came back with a whiteboard and handed it to Gokudera. The whiteboard was then propped against a table which was just the right height. He sat back down.

Gokudera took out a black marker and uncapped it with his mouth. He cap stayed there as he wrote something on the board. Gokudera's audience wrinkled their noses at the strong scent of the permanent marker.

He moved aside to let them read the words he wrote on the board.

_UMA: Unidentified Mysterious Animal_

_I always wondered what it stood for…_ Tsuna thought.

"What does that say, Octopus Head!"

"You idiot! If you know English, you'll know how to read! It says 'Unidentified Mysterious Animal!'"

"Hm!" Ryohei nodded and punched his fist in the air. "Got it!" Gokudera tsked again.

"Continuing on: UMA is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely," Gokudera flipped a page in a book to find an interesting topic within the UMA category

"Kufufu. Which means they don't exist," Mukuro stated. Gokudera glared. "It means that they exist but the stupid bastards don't admit it! And as my slave, your first command is to shut up."

Mukuro glared.

"M-Mukuro-sama…"

Mukuro glanced at Chrome and smiled. "Kufufu. This won't last long…once we get off the train I'll give that octopus a piece of my mind."

"Hah?" Gokudera said and glared. Mukuro turned his face away, ignoring him.

"Anyways…" Gokudera continued talking, and talking and talking. Some parts were interesting, but as a whole, they were getting restless of sitting through a university level lecture on Unidentified Mysterious Animals.

"The Ogopogo, which lives in Lake Okanagan, Canada, is also—"

"GYAPI! LAMBO-SAN HAS RETURNED!" Lambo crashed into the room with a piece of food still in one hand.

"Ah, be careful, kid!" Yamamoto shouted a warning too late. Lambo tripped over his own feet and landed on the chessboard, making it crash to the ground. Being wood, it didn't break. But Lambo also fell on it, causing an audible _crack_ to be heard. Lambo whimpered.

"Gotta…stay…calm…"

"Stupid cow! I was in the middle to teaching Juudaime about UMAs! And you just _had_ to go ahead and destroy that! I ought to bomb you!" Gokudera yelled.

"It wasn't Lambo-san's fault! Whaaa!" Lambo screamed back at Gokudera.

"Of course it was your fault!"

"Be quiet, Octopus Head! Die!" Lambo blindly reached into his hair for grenades.

"A-ah! Lambo! Don't use your grenades!" Tsuna ran to Lambo and tripped over something and fell on the kid.

"Tsuna's mean!" Lambo cried. Too late, Tsuna realised, the pins to the five grenades were already pulled out. The grenades fell around him.

"HIIEEEE!" Tsuna snatched up two as Gokudera did the same with the other three. They opened the window and the wind blew at their faces. At the speed the train was going, it was hard to breath. They threw the grenades and waited. Seconds later, the grenades were left kilometres behind and a quiet _boom_ could be heard.

Tsuna allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief. His spiky hair blew in the wind and went wild. He pulled his head back in, to see Gokudera holding Lambo up by the front of his shirt.

"You stupid cow! You could have killed Juudaime!" Lambo wailed and Tsuna plugged his ears.

"G-Gokudera-kun! I'm fine, p-please let Lambo down!"

"But Juudaime!"

"Please?" Tsuna widened his eyes considerably and clapped his hands together in a prayer. Gokudera faltered.

"If…If Juudaime says so…" Lambo dropped to the ground. Luckily, Chrome was there to catch him.

"Oh," she whispered. "The baby cow went to sleep…" Gokudera growled.

"With That stupid cow accompanying Juudaime, nothing good's going to happen!" Tsuna winced at the harsh comment.

"G-Gokudera-kun…"

"Juudaime! I should be the one going with you! Please allow me to trade places with Lambo!"

"_Do that and I'll shoot your brains out if you return,"_ an ominous voice threatened.

"Hie!" Tsuna started. Looking down, the chain he wore holding the device in place was shimmering. Reborn was shone lounging around somewhere in the gardens. _What does he mean by _if_? Reborn, stop scaring us,_ Tsuna thought.

"R-Reborn-san," Gokudera stuttered.

"Yo! It's been a while!"

"It's only been a few hours," Mukuro muttered.

"Hey, Sawada's friend!"

"_Since I picked the pairings, they will stay that way. If I hear otherwise…"_ he left the threat hanging and Gokudera gulped. Tsuna, who was out of view, shook his head crazily and gestured for Gokudera to drop the topic.

"H-Hai, Reborn-san!"

"_About your ride. How long do you think it will take to get to Salemi, the first place you go to?"_

"Um," Tsuna said, "the conductor said we'll get there after a few stops…maybe two days?"

"_Hn. Ciao."_ Reborn disconnected.

"What was that about?" Ryohei asked.

"Haha! Who knows?"

* * *

><p>After a short nap, Tsuna awoke with a good idea for a game the next time they grew bored of looking out the window. It didn't take long. After another messy meal, Lambo cried and complained about how bored he was getting. He began to stick bubble gum in Gokudera's hair.<p>

"STUPID COW! GET OUT OF MY HAIR!"

"LAMBO-SAN IS BORED! PLAY WITH THE GREAT LAMBO-SAMA!"

Yamamoto yawned and grinned.

"We can play a word game," Tsuna suggested.

"A word game?" Gokudera repeated. Tsuna nodded with a grin. He began to explain.

"I thought it would be interesting to play. You're paired up with someone and there are words written on these papers. The paper is stuck onto one of the partner's forehead, where they can't see what's written on it. It's the other partner's job to help the guesser guess what's written on the paper. Then you can decide what's the prize for each guess, or the final prize at the end for the pair who wins."

"Sounds boring," Lambo said immediately.

"Don't just go saying that Juudaime's ideas are boring!" Gokudera growled and hit Lambo on the forehead.

"What's the prize?" Ryohei asked.

Tsuna twitched. "Er…we decide that before we play…" _It won't do good to use the one Reborn set up._

Yes, it was true. Reborn was the one who forced him to play. Each time, Tsuna was the guesser. Reborn would try to make him guess what was written on it by using Leon to do actions, or symbols. On occasion, Reborn himself would give a clue.

The words were the most ridiculous things ever. Assassins, Boss, turtle, lion, pencil, pineapple, tonfa, book, homework, cow, octopus, cat, mama's yummy cooking, star, dame-Tsuna…okay, maybe they weren't so random.

The rules of Reborn's version? Each time Tsuna guessed wrong, he was bombed. The prize? He got to live another day.

Tsuna came back to the present. They all agreed on a prize, and they were about to start the game.

But then there was a slight change of plans…

* * *

><p>Tsuna's eye twitched. He stood before the table in the room, staring at the objects on it.<p>

"Eto...What are you doing?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-23rd**_


	16. Kill Me Now Pt 2

**Chapter Sixteen**

Tsuna's eye twitched. He stood before the table in the room, staring at the objects on it.

"What…are you doing?"

Gokudera looked up and grinned. "Juudaime, we're setting up the game!"

"But…" Tsuna reached in without a thought and grabbed the first thing his hands touched: a lobster pie. "Where did this come from?"

"I got the chef to make it for us!" Tsuna worried about the way Gokudera "got" the chef to make it for them.

"But…" He picked something else up with his left hand with a horrified face. "What are you planning on doing with acupuncture needles?"

Yamamoto laughed. "That was my suggestion as a penalty for not being able to guess the correct word!"

Other things on the table were:

-Slimy purple, silvery substance (Mukuro and Chrome)

**-Homemade glue mixed with mud, grass, leaves, etc (Ryohei and Yamamoto)***

-lobster pie

-black food colouring and strawberries

-paper mache

As well as leftover food:

-lasagna mashed up with milk

-meatballs and banana milkshake the size of a _huge_ mug

-sandwich (unknown contents)

-soup (unknown contents. Colour is murky green and yellow)

-bread with jam and peanut butter

-hot chocolate, coffee, and curry. A.K.A Triple Supreme

-bakery items (cupcakes, cakes, etc)

-snails and mysterious meat (cooked or uncooked is unknown)

…

"A-And…" Tsuna put those items down, and pointed a shaking finger at a large cauldron which was not so different than that of a witch's. _"That!"_

"A pot filled with boiling water! At the end, whoever's the final loser has to eat out of there with everything left over on the table!" Ryohei said. "THIS GAME IS _EXTREME!"_

"You're kidding!" Tsuna exclaimed. "Then what's the prize?"

"Kufufu. Of course, the prize is that you don't have to be possessed by me."

"Shut up!" Gokudera snapped. "No one threatens Juudaime!" He stood in front of Tsuna protectively and glared at Mukuro with his dynamite sticks out. Mukuro chuckled but didn't move.

"Gokudera-kun, it's alright! Mukuro didn't mean it!"

Gokudera obediently stepped back.

"Are we going to call Hibari down?" Yamamoto asked. Tsuna was beginning to shake his head and stopped.

"That's not a bad idea…" _It's getting colder now. This would be a good excuse to make him come in,_ Tsuna thought and rubbed his cheek.

"I'll call him in!" Yamamoto volunteered and left them.

"That baseball nut! What does he think he's doing?" Gokudera threw some kind of rock at the door Yamamoto just closed. "Doesn't he know that with Hibari here, we'll never finish the game?"

"H-Hibari-san's not that bad…" Before anyone can object, Tsuna quickly jumped up and down, and then settled. "Let's prepare the seats!"

"Hai, Juudaime!" Gokudera stood at attention. They moved the chairs so that there were two facing each other on both sides. In total, there were four chairs. Which meant two teams can challenge each other at the same time. Tsuna and Chrome prepared the words. Half way in, Ryohei and Gokudera joined in. The words were written on a small rectangular white piece of paper. Tsuna paused his writing and looked up. There was no noise and that made him frown.

Did Yamamoto get bitten to death by Hibari before he had the chance to talk? Just as he was about to go check, the door opened and the two came in silently. His eyes widened significantly.

"Hibari-san!"

"Herbivore…"

"How…you actually came down!"

"I heard that I can bite the loser to death."

Tsuna sweat-dropped and glanced quickly at Yamamoto who was scratching his head sheepishly.

"I-I guess…?" Tsuna looked at the others. They were staring at Hibari with disbelief and annoyance.

"Let's start!" Ryohei roared.

"How do we pair up?" Yamamoto asked. "How about a draw?"

They agreed, with no other reason to disagree.

This was how it went:

Ryohei and Tsuna

Gokudera and Yamamoto

Hibari and Mukuro

Chrome and Lambo

"Calm down Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna grinned in an attempt to convince his friend to come out of the corner…

Hibari and Mukuro didn't like it either.

"Maa, maa! This will be fun!" Yamamoto laughed. "Let's do our best!"

Gokudera grumbled and resigned after Tsuna gave him a pleading look. He sat himself on one of the chairs. Across from him was Yamamoto with that silly grin on his face. Oh, how he wanted to wipe that off his face.

Beside him was Ryohei. Across from the boxer sat Tsuna, who was jumping in his seat. Gokudera cocked his head but did nothing else.

Mukuro and Chrome lounged on the couch with Lambo observing them curiously from his spot on Chrome's lap. Hibari was on the other side with his arms crossed over his chest and his weapon slightly bulging from the jacket.

Tsuna smiled nervously with Hibari as the judge. If anyone made unnecessary eye contact in an attempt to communicate easier…they will have to be disciplined.

"Okay! Let's start!" Yamamoto said cheerfully. Tsuna nodded with a smile. He still looked slightly nervous with Hibari right beside him. Ryohei stuck a sheet of paper on Tsuna's forehead at the same time Gokudera stuck one on Yamamoto's. Both held different words they had to guess.

"Begin," Hibari said and crossed his arms.

"Does it have something to do with me?" Tsuna asked quickly, knowing they had a two minute time limit.

"IT _EXTRMELY_ DOESN'T!" Ryohei roared immediately. Tsuna straightened at the sudden reply, even if he should have seen it coming.

…

**With Gokudera and Yamamoto…**

"Ne, does it have something to do with baseball?" Yamamoto tapped a finger on the table and grinned.

Gokudera groaned. "No!"

"Oh…" Yamamoto scratched his head. "Do I know it?"

Gokudera twitched. "Yes…of course you do…"

"Okay…is it a name of a person?"

"Maybe." Gokudera decided that he wasn't going to work together with Yamamoto. It was fine by him to see the fool be punished with something like acupunctures.

…

**Back with Ryohei and Tsuna…**

"Is it in this room?" Tsuna asked after figuring out that it was an object.

"EXTREME!" Ryohei shouted. Tsuna sweat-dropped and Hibari's hands twitched. One reached for the tonfa and swiftly smacked Ryohei on the head and he flew back.

"That is not something to answer with," Hibari put his weapon away. "And you are too loud. You will be bitten to death more thoroughly later."

"Ugh…that was…_extreme…"_ Ryohei muttered and sat up on the ground.

"Onii-san, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Sawada! And yes, you got that right!" He moved back to his chair, ignoring the bruise on his forehead that was growing into the size of an apple.

"Is it big?"

"No!"

Tsuna scratched his head and looked around quickly trying to spot something in the room. There was still too much.

"Is it heavy?"

"Yes!"

"Is it a pot?"

"No!"

"Then…" He looked around some more. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw Ryohei's eyes darting towards…

"It's a—!"

…

**With Gokudera and Yamamoto…**

"Is the person a guy?"

"Maybe," Gokudera dragged the word out Yamamoto frowned.

"I can't figure out who it is if you keep on saying maybe…"

"Tch! Too bad!" _This Yamamoto…I'd like to see him lose!_

Yamamoto's face brightened.

"Is it Lambo?"

Gokudera twitched. Hibari eyed him.

"Herbivore…"

"Yes!" Gokudera snapped in irritation. Just when he was beginning to enjoy irritating Yamamoto, he got the right answer…and he wasn't allowed to lie.

Suddenly, without warning, Hibari raised one of his two tonfa and brought it down on Tsuna's head. Luckily, Tsuna had moved a millimetre away and he wasn't killed.

"Time's up," Hibari said as Gokudera objected to Hibari's way of…announcing the time.

"_Ite_…" Tsuna muttered on the ground. His head throbbed and his vision grew blurry.

"You also lost," Hibari said and get ready to pound Tsuna. And that, he did.

_****E^RGH8i3o!****_

"Juudaime!" Gokudera crouched beside Tsuna and raised his head dramatically as if he was dying from a bullet wound. "Hang in there!"

"G-Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna tried to speak but he was in such a daze even forming a complete sentence was a challenge.

"Juudaimeee!"

"I'm…"

"Punishment time…kufufufufu," Mukuro chuckled.

Gokudera glowered. "There is no way Juudaime would take on the punishment! He was about to answer, but Hibari called time!"

"I'm fine…Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna groaned and propped himself up on his knees and closed his eyes. The pain was numbing and was bearable.

"You look as pale as a ghost!" Yamamoto laughed when he saw Tsuna's face. Tsuna smiled. _I feel like I'm going to become one…Hibari-san's hits are _painful!

"Nyahahaha! Tsuna is in _trou-uble~!"_

"Shut up, stupid cow!"

"This is _EXTREME!_ Sawada, I'm sorry that you have to face the punishment to the _extreme!"_

"Get back here!" Gokudera ran after Lambo who was laughing his head off.

"Maa, maa! How about we decide what to give Tsuna then? Or should we let him decide himself?"

"I'll decide myself!" Tsuna cried out. He wanted to avoid the acupuncture needles at all costs…as well as that mysterious meat…

"Kufufu. It doesn't work that way," Mukuro chuckled. "He draws the stick." Tsuna gulped. Chrome was holding a hand full of sticks that were the same colour, length, and shape. Gokudera ran back to Tsuna's right.

"I'm terribly sorry, Juudaime! I can't control this game!"

"It's alright, it's alright!" Tsuna grinned and reached for a straw. He looked down at it, as did everyone else except for Hibari, who was leaning by the window. Tsuna cocked his head at the words. Then he sighed with relief.

"Food colouring and Strawberries, whatever that is," he named the item.

"Haha! That was prepared by me!" Yamamoto cheered.

"It better not be anything life threatening," Gokudera threatened the baseball star. The latter laughed cheerfully and reassured them that Tsuna will still be in one piece by the end of it.

"Come here, Tsuna! Sit right here!" Yamamoto patted a chair. Tsuna walked over to it suspiciously but sat down. Mukuro stood grinning. Chrome was shifting her weight from one leg to another. Gokudera was tied up by Ryohei at Yamamoto's suggestion.

"He might try to interfere," was Yamamoto's explanation with an innocent, sweet, angelic face.

"So you _are _trying to do something to Juudaime! Oi, Lawn Head! Get me out of this!"

"I can't do that, Octopus-Head! I want to see what's going on!"

Gokudera struggled against his bonds to no avail.

Lambo laughed at him. "HAHAHAAH! Octopus-Head's hair looks funny! It's alive! Gyaa!" He screamed and ran a Gokudera to…to do what Lambo does.

"Gokudera-kun!"

"Kufufu…time for your penalty…"

Yamamoto plucked a bottle of black food colouring from the table and shook it to make sure it was still in liquid form. Chrome went to gently pick up the bowl of strawberries as if it were a ticking bomb.

"…How is this going to work…exactly?" Tsuna asked them. What can they do with strawberries and…food colouring?

Yamamoto poured the litre of food colouring into the bowl of strawberries. Tsuna gulped and jumped in his seat a few times with anxiety. Chrome put the bowl down and Mukuro stabbed at the stuff with his trident.

In seconds, the contents turned to mush. Yamamoto picked it up swiftly and took a wooden brush. He brought out some of the mixed strawberries and food colouring and showed it to all of them. By now, Lambo had grenades decorated around Gokudera with a gag in his mouth.

"What should I do with this?" Yamamoto scratched his head after Chrome took the bowl away from him.

"Force feed?" Mukuro suggested. Gokudera growled in the background but was ignored.

"Hm…FACE PAINT!" Ryohei roared and raised his arms high in the air, as if this was the best idea ever.

Tsuna slackened. This was just as bad as when Reborn draw circles all over his face during New Year!

Before he could say anything, Ryohei had his head in his hands and Yamamoto was carefully drawing some kind of design on Tsuna's face. Tsuna froze and tried very hard not to move, so that the thing didn't poke his eye, nose, or mouth. The cold and bumpy substance made him shiver.

"My turn!" Ryohei said and let go of Tsuna's head.

"Gaah!" Tsuna's head fell to a side since he was previously relying on Ryohei's support.

"Oops!" The stick flew off Tsuna's face and left a long streak. Ryohei grabbed another brush and did some scribbles that felt like words.

"Senpai, you ruined my picture," Yamamoto wetted his stick and corrected his "picture".

"It looks awesome TO THE _EXTREME!"_ Tsuna's eardrums rang at the closeness of the shout.

"Onii-san…please be careful with your yelling and what you're drawing…" he didn't want his face looking like a mess, although he already felt that it was happening.

"Kufufufu… _that _is not how you draw. Hand me that," Mukuro ordered and Ryohei shouted to get his own. Mukuro snatched Ryohei's out of his grip and draw something on Tsuna's forehead.

"Arara! What are you doing?" Lambo asked and jumped onto Yamamoto's head for a better view.

Behind him, Gokudera was in a tight situation. Literally. Light, long cords were all over his already wrapped body and attached to pin of pink grenades. The grenades themselves were stuck on various objects very near Gokudera. He groaned.

"Who the hell taught this brat how to lay bombs? I'm gonna kill him when I find out!"

Then Lambo got all excited and dunked his hand into the bowl of strawberries and food colouring.

"Lambo-san is also going to paint on Tsuna's face!"

"Don't you dare!" Gokudera was unable to move.

"Lambo, be careful!" Yamamoto warned as Lambo reached for Tsuna's face. They pulled him back as Tsuna veered away, causing Mukuro's brush to skid over his left eyelid.

Mukuro's smirking face turned into a frown and he glared at Tsuna.

"Sorry!" Tsuna gave him a tight smile.

"Sorry doesn't cut it, Tsunayoshi. Kufufufu. I'm afraid I will have to draw some…bonus items…"

"My turn!" Yamamoto drew something else on Tsuna's face as Lambo forced himself to fit. Ryohei grabbed his brush back and continued his drawing which was already drawn over by many people. It was barely recognisable, but he continued right where he left off.

"I hope you all know what you're doing!"

"Of course!" Ryohei, Yamamoto, Mukuro, and Lambo retorted in unison.

"Now give back my brush," Mukuro snapped. Tsuna winced as the stick scraped his cheek slightly.

_That's not going to look good…_

They pushed at each other, battling for a spot in front of Tsuna. As they drew on his face, someone would push or shove the person, causing another random streak to appear.

"Herbivores," Hibari growled. "Your three minutes are up."

"Eh? Three minutes?" Tsuna asked. His fingers were tapping against the chair's arms impatiently. "Why three minutes?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you!" Yamamoto hit his fist into his other palm. "With each choice, there is a short set of rules to outline what to do! For this one, it was to do something with ink and strawberries for three minutes," he laughed. "But we decided to use food colouring instead!"

Tsuna nodded slowly, then ushered them away from him so he could find a mirror. Then he found one, he stuck his face in front of it and screamed.

"Juudaime!"

"Is that me?" Tsuna panicked and raised his hand to touch his face. Ryohei stopped him.

"Sawada! You're not allowed to wipe it off until the game ends!" He had a frown of disapproval, as if he worked very hard on his masterpiece and didn't like the idea of Tsuna ruining it just yet.

"But!"

"It looks amazing, Tsuna!" Yamamoto patted his back.

"Gahahahaah! Lambo-sama is the one who made it so wonderful!"

Tsuna sagged. His face was absolutely horrifying. He looked like he just walked off a movie set made for a horror film.

The red of the strawberry made it look as if there was blood all over his face while the black added shadows and the illusion of dried blood. But if one looked closely, they would be able to detect the sweet smell of strawberries.

The designs of the "blood" will be recognised as crazy and random things drawn on someone's face—such as, the large text of "EXTREME!" Which was written across his left cheek—or the drawing of a baseball on his right cheek, and the words, "Possession Complete," over his forehead; a piece of candy drawn on his nose accompanied by swirls and more random streaks.

He could see the words "Kufufufu" overlapped by a flower drawn by Lambo and a few more random drawings. They were all overlapping each other, so it was hard to tell what was what.

"Guys…"

"It's _EXTREMELY_ awesome!"

"Hahaha!"

"Kufufu."

Tsuna sweat-dropped.

"The next two pairs of contestants are Hibari with Mukuro!" Yamamoto announced. Tsuna looked at his face again and shrugged. Reborn's odd drink took over again. He continued Yamamoto's introduction with, "Against Chrome and Lambo! It's a race against the clock!"

Hibari stiffened and glared at Mukuro. Mukuro stared back, chuckling evilly. Lambo just laughed and jumped onto the table. Chrome sat across from him.

Gokudera was still on the floor, getting stiff from not moving a single limb in fear of setting off the grenades.

"Gokudera-kun, hang in there! I'll get you out!" Tsuna leaped to the spot beside Gokudera's feet.

"Juudaime…I feel so ashamed to need my own boss to save me from this simple trap!" Gokudera shouted and banged his head against the floor..

"Gokudera-kun! Please stop!" Tsuna did his best to free his friends from his bonds. Then he carefully severed the strings from the grenades. Then Gokudera continued to kneel and hit his head against the floor, in apology.

Tsuna resorted to covering the floor with his bare hands. Gokudera's hard forehead knocked into them and they both cried in pain. What on earth made him do _that?_ Tsuna winced.

"Okay, stop. Seriously, Gokudera! You're going to hurt yourself one day! How are you going o become my right-hand man if you're dead from pounding your head against the floor, eh?"

Gokudera froze and looked at his boss with shining eyes. He nodded mutely and proudly, not trusting his voice to speak.

"And now….the match begins!" Yamamoto cried and rang a small bell. While Tsuna and Gokudera were on the floor, Mukuro and Chrome had the papers stuck on their foreheads. Hibari glared at Yamamoto when he suggested Hibari be the guesser. Yamamoto had then turned to Mukuro, who gave him a glare just as terrifying. He was one of the people who prepared the punishments and he didn't want to get caught by his own game.

And so, they settled it with Rock, Paper, Scissors. Mukuro lost.

"Start!" Tsuna declared and jumped in the air with Yamamoto.

Hibari and Mukuro's glares intensified immediately.

"Is it something I can posses?" Mukuro snapped. Hibari narrowed his eyes, wondering how to answer. He went with, "No."

Yamamoto scratched his head. "Ne, Tsuna, is—" he pointed at the word for Mukruo, "—able to be possessed by Mukuro?" Tsuna looked from his position with Lambo and Chrome. He frowned.

"I don't think so."

Yamamoto grinned. "Then Hibari's answer is correct!" Hibari glared at Yamamoto for doubting him.

"Of course I'm right."

"Is it hard?" Mukuro asked. Hibari smirked.

"Maybe."

Mukuro's aura flared.

...

**With Chrome and Lambo…**

"Is it an object?" she asked Lambo, who was picking his nose.

"No! Guess again!"

"So it's a person?"

"Duh!"

Tsuna blinked and cocked his head. Hm… he shrugged. He guessed that it _could_ be a name. After all, they knew someone with that name.

"Is it a boy?"

Lambo blinked. "Uh…no!"

"Is it a girl?"

"YEAH!"

"Eto…do I know her?"

"No!" He screamed and laughed.

"Lambo, no lying!" Tsuna shouted.

"Aw," Lambo complained. "Then yes…"

...

**With Hibari and Mukuro…**

"Is it blue?"

"No."

"Red?"

"No."

"Yellow?"

"…Yes…"

"Is it edible?"

"Yes."

"Is it a fruit?"

"Maybe."

"Is it a vegetable?"

"Maybe."

Mukuro's vein twitched after a minute of asking questions that got him nowhere.

"You're running out of time!"

_I know that, kufu. No need to tell me,_ Mukuro growled in his head and directed a glare at Yamamoto.

...

**With Chrome and Lambo…**

"Are we close together?"

"Maybe!"

"Do you know her really well?" Chrome thought of all the girls she knew.

"Gyahaha! Of course!" He was about to go further but Tsuna quickly covered his mouth.

"Lambo! You almost gave the answer away! You can't do that!"

"Baka Tsuna! I wasn't going to do that!" Lambo shrieked.

"D-Does her name have another meaning that's very easy to guess?"

Lambo stopped his bickering to answer.

"Uh…maybe?"

_You don't know the answer!_ Tsuna and Chrome thought in their minds.

"Juudaime…it was a bad idea to let that stupid cow into this," Gokudera whispered to Tsuna. Tsuna was beginning to agree.

...

**With Hibari and Mukuro…**

Hibari smirked inwardly. "Maybe."

"H-Hey, Hibari…" Yamamoto cut in nervously. "Y-You're over using that…you only have three more "maybe" answers allowed before you're automatically…"

Hibari snorted. "Herbivores don't need to tell me anything I already know."

Yamamoto gulped and laughed. "O-Okay…"

Mukuro suddenly realised what it might be. And he felt like torturing something to release his anger.

"Is it sharp with spikes?"

"Yes," Hibari said calmly.

A vein popped in Mukuro. "A pineapple. It's a pineapple."

"No."

Mukuro looked into Hibari's cold eyes. "Of course it's a pineapple! What else could it be!"

Chrome spoke from her side of the table to Lambo at the same time. "Is it Haru-chan?"

"WE HAVE A WINNER!" Tsuna raised one of Chrome's hands and Ryohei cheered.

"_EXTREME!"_

"About time," Gokudera snorted. Mukuro blinked. He lost. Again.

"Uh," Yamamoto raised his hand. "Mukuro also got his answer too, Tsuna! What do we do now?"

"Hah?" Tsuna looked at him with a surprised look. Mukuro tore the paper off his forehead and stared at the characters: Pineapple-san.

Tsuna and Gokudera stifled laughs.

Mukuro growled at Hibari.

"Oya? The skylark here said that I was wrong."

"You asked if it was a pineapple," Hibari said coolly. Mukuro waved the paper in his face. Hibari continued, "You said it as a _thing,_ not a person. You got it wrong."

"What the hell?" Mukuro crunched up the paper and tossed it at Hibari who effortlessly avoided it. The paper hit the wall with a sickening crack. Ryohei's eyes widened as he ran to the paper. He examined it and yelled in surprise.

"This is _extreme!"_

"What is it?" Tsuna asked. He was still wondering who the rightful winner was.

"The paper's sharp and heavy!"

"That's impossible! It's just a piece of scrunched up paper," Gokudera countered. Ryohei tossed it to Gokudera. He was about to catch it but when it came closer, he noticed the shiny spikes and the speed that it flew. He stepped to the right and caught the ball as it fell. "What!"

Tsuna gulped. Who knew that a piece of paper could be so dangerous! It must be Mukuro and his illusions.

Now, back to the main problem…it was true that Mukuro and Chrome guessed the correct answer, despite _Pineapple-san_ being a certain person and _pineapple_ being the fruit. So, who _really_ won this round?

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Just a little extra!

*HOW "**Homemade glue mixed with mud, grass, leaves, etc (Ryohei and Yamamoto)"** CAME TO BE…

…

_-start-_

"This is _extreeeeeeeeeme!" _The train hooted as he screamed. Ryohei was hung on his ankles out the window by Yamamoto.

"Hahaha! Did you find any, senpai?"

Ryohei looked at the ground rushing pass him. "NO, NOT YET! I NEED TO GO DOWN FURTHER _TO THE EXTREME!"_

"I'll try!" Yamamoto grinned and scooted closer to the window. His body was practically bent in half—one half in the train, and the other hanging outside, both arms gripping Ryohei's ankles tightly. Then he felt himself being pulled out the window.

"Baseball freak!" Gokudera grabbed hold of Yamamoto. "You idiot, be more careful!"

Yamamoto laughed but it was lost in the wind. "Thanks, Gokudera!"

"Tch! Hurry up!"

"Kufufufufu," Mukuro chuckled from the inside, safe from the ruckus. He sat luxuriously "Yes, hurry and get what you need. Otherwise, Decimo will come back in time to stop this madness. Kufufu!"

"We know!" Gokudera snapped.

"Boss…" Chrome murmured. "A few more minutes, at least…"

"GYAPII! Not fair! I want to play!"

Down the line, Ryohei was concentrating, wondering which patch was best to be picked. His arms were crossed across his chest as his head was tilted until it was facing directly at the ground.

"Oi, Lawn-Head!" Gokudera hollered. "What's taking you so long?"

"I _EXTREMELY_ CAN'T DECIDE WHICH _EXTREME_ CLUMP TO PICK, OCTOPUS-HEAD!" Ryohei screamed back.

"By the time you decide, that…_clump_ would be miles off already! Just pick whatever's in front of your nose!"

"Senpai, Gokudera's right!" Yamamoto shouted.

"HMPH! ALRIGHT!" Ryohei decided to agree with them. After all, they had only minutes before Sawada returned and freaked out to see his friends hanging out the window by just their ankles. _"EXTREME MUD AND GRASS PICKING!" _Ryohei roared and reached out with both arms to dig them into the ground.

"Whoa!" Yamamoto exclaimed. Ryohei was momentarily stuck to the ground, dragging Yamamoto down as well. Gokudera tightened his grip on Yamamoto and grunted.

Yamamoto gritted his teeth and pulled his arms to keep Ryohei's head clear of the uneven ground by the tracks. The sudden release of Ryohei with two large clumps of grass and mud in his hands had them all off balance. Thanks to years of training though, they all regained it within milliseconds, so fast that it didn't seem to have happened. Gokudera helped Yamamoto pull Ryohei slowly back into the cart.

They sat panting on the floor.

"That was _extreme!"_

"Tch! Just get that ready! I have the glue made. It's in that bowl over there," Gokudera growled.

_-end-_

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-23rd**_


	17. Kufufu! OW!

**Chapter Seventeen**

"You lose," Hibari said to Mukuro.

Mukuro glared at the prefect and chuckled. "That's unreasonable."

"But," Tsuna said and trailed off after seeing Mukuro's glare. The shrugged and continued. "Mukuro _did_ say 'pineapple' as the fruit and not a person."

"Who are you implying?" Mukuro demanded. Tsuna and Lambo shrank back. Chrome sat there, waiting for the outcome... She was pretty sure that Mukuro lost, but she wasn't going to say anything. This was Mukuro, after all.

"You lost. Just admit it." Gokudera grinned and collected the Sticks of Punishment from a nearby table. He had them ready for Mukuro as the illusionist began speaking again.

"I still got the answer right. You didn't say it had to be word for word."

"But we didn't say that you could win with only half the answer either," Tsuna cocked an eyebrow.

"Haha, Mukuro, you lost! The punishment won't be _that_ bad."

Meanwhile, Tsuna was thinking to himself. _Why am I disagreeing with Mukuro in the first place? He might just decide to possess me instead! _His mind was freaking out at the moment. But his face held a goofy grin. What on earth was _wrong_ with him?

"Hn. You lose, herbivore."

Mukuro directed his glare at a smirking Hibari.

"You...I'll get you for this!"

Hibari's chair toppled over as he stood with the two tonfa out. Tsuna groaned.

"Not another useless fight! Mukuro, Hibari-san, could the two of you please _stop_ your crazy fighting minds?"

"You'll blow the train up if you fight in here!" Gokudera growled. "Go fight outside!"

_That's not much better!_ Tsuna shrieked in his mind.

"Maa, maa! There's no need to fight over a game..."

"This isn't about a game, " Mukuro said cruelly. "It's about an insult."

"Hn, who said that I was talking about you?" Hibari still had that smirk on his face. In fact, it was getting bigger, if that was even possible.

"That's it…" Mukuro stomped his trident on the train's floor and the sound reverberated throughout the room. Their faces were hit by a wave of mist.

"Whoa, that's some aura he has! Hahaha!"

"_WHAAAA! WHAAAA! _Lambo-san wants to go home!"

Tsuna and the others covered their faces with their arms and tried to stay balanced. They felt the train creaking but nothing more. He could faintly hear the conductor calling the next stop. It was going to be another stop before Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Mukuro were to leave to find their item.

Their boss squinted. Those who managed to open their eyes slightly saw that Mukuro was shrouded in his flames with an evil look on his face. Across the innocent table stood Hibari, who looked just as horrifying; he was itching for a good fight.

"Hibari-san! Don't fight him in the middle of a game!"

"I don't listen to herbivores like you."

"Don't insult Juudaime like that!" Gokudera looked ready to join in the fray. Tsuna quickly put a hand on Gokudera's arm to stop him and Yamamoto took his other one.

"Maa, Gokudera! We should calm them down, not fight them!" Yamamoto had to shout to be heard.

"What are we going to do?" Tsuna cried.

"I have an EXTREME idea!" They turned to Ryohei sceptically.

Gokudera said, "What kind of good idea do _you_ have, Lawn-Head?"

"It's an _extreme_ idea!" He reassured them and closed his eyes. His three friends eyed him. Lambo was in the background whining.

"Onii-san…what are you—ONII-SAN!"

Ryohei was running towards Hibari and Mukuro, who were just about to begin their on-train-battle. He ran head first into them and crashed Mukuro to the ground. This wouldn't have happened if Mukuro was expecting it, but because he wasn't…

Ryohei and Mukuro were now sprawled on the carpeted floor with Mukuro twitching. Tsuna and Gokudera stared at them.

"That…_that_ was your great idea?" Gokudera's shaded eyes plus his shaking fist made Yamamoto and Tsuna inch away from him.

"It worked to the _extreme!"_ Ryohei protested and jumped back up.

Mukuro groaned and sat up. "Oya," he said painfully. "Aren't you a boxer? Why are you tackling me like a football player?"

That seems to offend Ryohei, as if Mukuro had just said he abandoned boxing for football.

"I WILL NEVER DO THAT TO THE _EXTREME! HOW CAN YOU THINK THAT I WOULD DO THAT?"_

Tsuna winced at the volume. He approached Ryohei quickly. "Onii-san, no one's saying that you…did anything…?" He scratched his head. What exactly was Ryohei never going to do? It probably had to do with football and boxing. He shrugged it off, seeing that Ryohei had calmed down.

Hibari glared at Mukuro. _Pathetic,_ he thought and turned to walk back to the roof of the train. He could hear the herbivores telling him to stay but he ignored them. It was about time that he continued doing whatever _he_ wanted, and not consider the other's requests.

"Man, I thought that Hibari could stay for a while. He didn't get to dish out Mukuro's punishment," Yamamoto said. "I didn't think he'd leave before doing anything embarrassing to Mukuro…"

"Hibari can't stand crowds," Gokudera reminded Yamamoto, as if anyone needed to be reminded.

"Are you alright?" Chrome asked Mukuro worriedly.

"Of course he's fine," Gokudera snorted. "Anyways—Mukuro! You have to listen to my orders! You lose, so pick a damn stick already!" Mukuro's mouth twitched.

"Oh, that's right! Mukuro is—!" Tsuna covered the baseball player's mouth before he could continue speaking. But that didn't help because they all knew what he was talking about.

Until they left the train, Mukuro was Gokudera's "slave" and had to do whatever Gokudera ordered.

Chrome murmured Mukuro's name in a concerned tone. She of all people knew how much Mukuro hated being used or ordered around.

Mukuro sighed.

"Kufufufufu, I supposed that I will be the one to draw one out then." Mukuro snagged one with his long fingers and tossed it onto the table from where he now stood.

**…**

After a while of staring at the stick's words…

**…**

And after another long while trying not to die of laughter…

**…**

And then deciding exactly what they should do with this dangerous penalty…

**…**

After disagreeing and fighting against each other (Mukuro, Gokudera, and Ryohei)…

**…**

They finally decided on who should be the one to do this deed…

**…**

And they did it…

**…**

The outcome?

**…**

**…**

"…Oya? What's this?" Mukuro's eye twitched, but he wasn't doing it on his own accord.

Yamamoto laughed. Tsuna grinned with amazement. "Gokudera-kun! You're amazing! Where did you learn to do that?"

Gokudera was embarrassed as he ducked his head and laughed. "I, eto, I learned it when I went off the radar in the Chinese region in Italy a few years ago. There was this doctor who only let me stay if I became his assistant…"

"Whaa! That's amazing!" Yamamoto said. "You did all that without killing him!"

Chrome masked her laugh as a cough and turned away.

"GYAPPI! THERE'S A HEDGEHOG IN THE TRAIN!"

"That's not a hedgehog, you dolt! It's a porcupine!"

_It's a good thing Hibari decided to leave when he did…if he didn't, who knows how or what he would do to Mukuro with this type of punishment._

The reason for all this talk was because of Mukuro's punishment. What was his punishment? Well…

"…You're lucky you didn't strike any major arteries otherwise you would be dead by now. Kufufufu."

"You'd also be dead if I put them there! You see this part right here?! If I put one there, you'd be dead in two seconds!" Gokudera jabbed at a part of Mukuro's neck.

Mukuro growled. He didn't dare move too much, since he would feel uncomfortable. Of course he would. Who wouldn't, if their body was covered with acupuncture needles in their sitting position—and with the rule that they had to stay like that until the end of the game?

Gokudera had used up every single needle that was available to him and stuck them into every single harmless part of the body.

Tsuna stifled a laugh. It was hard to blame him for laughing when he imagined a Mukuro-Porcupine. No, make that an uncontrollable laughing Mukuro-Porcupine.

"L-Let-let's…" He found it hard to continue speaking while looking at Mukuro. Mukuro glared. Tsuna bit his lips and tried _hard_ not to laugh. Of course, he still laughed. There was no way he couldn't.

Ryohei shouted in extreme and said that Gokudera should try to open up a shop. Yamamoto laughed at their bickering.

They continued to play until it was decided that they were going to have one final round. The statistics so far were:

**Tsuna:** 6 Losses, 2 wins

**Gokudera:** 2 losses, 6 wins

**Yamamoto:** 5 losses 3 wins

**Ryohei:** 7 losses, 1 win

**Chrome:** 3 losses, five wins

**Lambo:** 8 losses 0 wins

**Mukuro:** 2 losses 6 wins

**Hibari:** 0 losess 1 win

Mukuro and Gokudera were tied. So, it was decided that these two will be the contestants for the final match.

"The last one will be a bit different," Tsuna explained, pacing on the carpeted floor, acting serious as if he were explaining an top ranked mission. "Instead of the two of you on the same team, you get to choose your own partner that you will be asking questions to. The goal is to win—which means you have to guess the correct word stuck on your forehead."

"Kufufufufu. I'm definitely going to win."

"Hah! Hell no! There is no way you're going to win with Juudaime on my team!"

The two had a mini-glaring contest until Tsuna stood between them. He put a bored expression on his face. Combined with his "face paint", it was as terrifying as any kind of glare his Mist or Cloud Guardian could give each other. Gokudera faltered and then lowered his gaze. Tsuna looked at him confusingly. Since when was he able to just look at them and then without a word, get Gokudera to obey him? Oh well. On with the game!

"Yo! I'm your referee!" Yamamoto waved a hand at them and stood straight with his arms crossed across his chest. He would have looked very official and strict if it weren't for his goofy grin and happy-go-lucky voice.

"Just get on with it!"

"Kufufu. Nagi and I will win and watch the two of you suffer. Kufufufufufufufufu!"

"Maa, maa, Gokudera, let me announce the rules first," Yamamoto sighed and brought out a piece of paper.

"Well hurry up with it!"

"And here it is!" He began to read them out loud for everyone to hear.

"There is no time limit. You win as long as you get the correct word. There will be no name calling, swearing, physical, mental, or verbal abuse to the other—"

"Oi! You can skip that!"

"Sorry, sorry!

"The penalty will go to both losing players. There will be no cheating by using eye contact, secret phrases, or movements. There will be an extra penalty for the losing team if the game goes past the ten minute mark.

"On your mark," Yamamoto began, "get set…"

"GO!" he, Ryohei, and Lambo yelled.

The two began to drown their team member with questions. At the same pace, the questioners shot back answers.

"Juudaime, is it a human?"

"No."

"UMA?

"No."

"Object?"

"YES!"

"Nagi, is it alive?"

"Yes."

"Is it a boy?

"Yes."

"Do I know this boy?"

"…No." _Mukuro-sama…even if it's alive…it doesn't have to be human…_

"Juudaime! Is it in this room?"

"NO."

"Is it a common object?"

"Yes."

"Is it found in school?"

"Er…yes?"

"Have I used it before?"

"Yeah!"

"Am I very familiar with it?"

"YEAAH!"

"Nagi…is it an animal?"

"Yes," Chrome sighed in relief as Mukuro was back on track.

"Is it big?"

"No."

"Can it fly?"

"Yes."

Mukuro's mind raced as he thought of all the animals that knew how to fly.

"Juudaime, there isn't much that I'm familiar with…is it my ring?"

"No."

"Is it—?"

"Is it an owl?" Mukuro said quickly.

"AND MUKURO WINS THIS ROUND!" Ryohei screamed.

"—my dynamites?" Gokudera said just a second after Mukuro asked his question. He realised that he lost and groaned loudly. He cried out and apologised to Tsuna. "I'm sorry, Juudaime!"

"It's fine, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna said lightly with a smile. "This was meant to be fun, after all!"

"Juudaime…"

"Nyahahahaha! Baka Tsuna and Octopus-Head have to go to the big pot! NYAHAHA!" Lambo was covered with grease from a mysterious soup which was forced down his throat by Mukuro before anyone could stop him.

Tsuna paled although it wasn't visible with the globs on his face.

"Juudaime…"

"It-It's perfectly fine!" Tsuna declared and jumped up. "Come on! Let's mix up our wonderful elixir!"

"YOSH! IN IT GOES!"

The remaining half of the lobster pie was dunked into the water. Surprisingly, it was still boiling. A bit of sizzling was heard, which made Tsuna doubt that it was entirely, one hundred percent water. Then Lambo tossed in scrapes of the green murky soup as well as a strawberry leaf.

Yamamoto dropped in the remaining bits of the strawberry and black food colouring. Oh—was it mentioned that Yamamoto's face was clayed-in? His penalty was a face mask of the grass and mud he and Ryohei collected with the help of Gokudera.

"In it goes, in it goes," Yamamoto hummed as he poured n the remainder of…something. Mukuro stabbed at the mysterious meat and dunked it in. Many other things were put in—all which made Tsuna and Gokudera's faces turn green.

"Gokudera-kun, did I just see onii-san put in…?"

"Ah…I think you did…"

Yamamoto then hummed, "Stir, stir, stir!" Tsuna and Gokudera sweat-dropped.

"Okay! It's finished to the _extreme!_" Ryohei hefted the cauldron and poured its contents into two large mugs given to him by Mukuro, who was now free of the needles and snickering like mad.

"Kufufufu…Drink up!"

Gingerly, the two picked up their drinks hand held it away from their bodies as if it would explode at any given second.

Tsuna gulped. "Let's do this…"

"Y…eah…it can't be worse than aneki's poison cooking…" And the two of them…drank the contents. Tsuna dropped his wooden mug and clutched his throat, gagging.

"Disgusting!" _This is as bad as Bianchi's cooking! No…scratch that…Bianchi's cooking is must better when it's disguised as amazing food…this is plain…just…ugh!_

_Must…stay strong!_ Gokudera willed himself to not give Mukuro the satisfaction he wanted by seeing his victims suffer.

They clutched their stomachs and fell to the floor groaning. Yamamoto leaned in and observed the two. "Oh! Looks like they couldn't take it!"

"But we have to continue with the punishment…kufufufu…" Mukuro smirked and tugged at Gokudera's shirt front…and swiftly dunked the silver haired head into the half filled pot of gunk.

…There was silence for a full minute. Ryohei looked at Gokudera with a frown as Yamamoto scratched his head, wondering why nothing was happening. Chrome and Lambo approached the cauldron cautiously.

"Is…he alright…?"

Lambo laughed maniacally. "Bakadera will now be my slave!"

"Octopus-Head is _extremely _good at staying underwater for so long!"

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna struggled to sit up. His stomach gurgled, disagreeing. Tsuna flopped back onto the floor. Just at that moment, Gokudera's nerves realised the _hot_ situation they were in at the moment.

"HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!" Gokudera leaped away from Mukuro, who loosened his grip to watch amusingly at Gokudera.

"Kufufufufu!"

"Hahaha! Gokudera, your face is all red and blue!"

"Are you alright?" Tsuna was anxiously trying to get back up. Gokudera was running around, looking for cold water to put his head in.

"AARRGG!"

"Kufufuf. Tsunayoshi…you face the same fate…although it will have to be cut short, since I don't want to possess a body with a demented face." Tsuna paled. His other friends, not thinking that it was anything dangerous—_It's definitely dangerous!_ _HIIIIE!_—didn't interfere with Mukuro dunking Tsuna's entire head into the cauldron.

_Hot-hot-hot-hot-hot-hot-hot-hot-hot!_ Tsuna screamed in his head so loudly he wondered if they could hear him. _This is too hot!_

He resurfaced with bits and pieces of food in his hair and his face paint ruined. Lambo screamed at the horrifying sight and instantly threw six grenades in an attempt to get rid of the gooey monster.

"Hie!" One hit his head and bounced onto the floor.

_Thump! Thump! Thump!_

Tsuna was braced for the impact with one leg in the air and both arms flailed out in front of his face and his entire body leaning back.

No explosion came. He opened one of his eyes nervously and looked for the grenades. He found five littered around him with their pins still attached.

"Lucky!" He sighed loudly and flopped backwards onto the floor.

Lambo screams in frustration. "The monster's still here! Lambo-san will kill it! Die!"

"No! Lambo-kun…that's not a monster…" Chrome said quickly and caught Lambo in mid-air. "That's Boss." Lambo stopped struggling for a moment and looked up at Chrome with a confused face.

"Tsuna?"

She nodded.

"Yeah…it's me, Lambo! So don't just throw bombs at me!" Tsuna was clearing his face of the strawberries and food colouring as well as the weird substances in the pot, since the game already ended with him and Gokudera as the biggest losers.

Lambo blinked and nodded slowly. Then he looked at his grenades. Tsuna watched Lambo's face.

"Dok!" Lambo gulped. His expression looked like one of being hit 100km/h at a brick wall.

"Lambo?"

"Boom…" Lambo muttered. Tsuna blinked. He looked down. Just when he remembered that Lambo had originally thrown _six_ grenades…something in the train went

_BOOM!_

The train shuddered and continued on. Inside the private class part of the train was a huge mess made by a single grenade. But this one grenade had sparked five dynamite sticks. These flew everywhere as Gokudera rolled on the grenade and fell. Five seconds later, everything exploded.

The frames hanging on the wall tilted and the bookshelf tumbled down. The couches and tables were slightly scorched and an entire area of the carpet was gone. The plywood floor beneath was black and bent out of shape. Gokudera was covered in soot along with Ryohei who was nearby when it happened.

Tsuna crawled from underneath the bookshelf and coughed. He winced at the sight. _Uh-oh…Reborn's going to force me to pay for this._

There was knocking at the door.

"Who is it?" Gokudera growled.

"Sirs, we suspect that there was a minor earthquake just now. I'd like to know if your company is all safe," was the muffled response.

"The hell we're safe!"

Yamamoto got up and opened the door. The porter outside took one look behind Yamamoto and paled.

"I'm terribly sorry for your inconvenience, sirs! We will be fully responsible for any injuries and damages conflicted upon you! We are so, so, so sorry!"

Tsuna blinked. He couldn't believe his luck!

The man left after apologising a second time. Yamamoto slowly closed the door. Then he turned back around and had a goofy grin on his face.

"Well, that's lucky!"

"Stupid baseball freak!"

* * *

><p>By night fall, they were all tired. They were moved to another set of private rooms on the train so they could continue their journey with a fresh room. They were to reach Salemi by tomorrow afternoon, so it was assumed that they would rest earlier tonight. However, it was not so…<p>

"You dumb cow! Stop disturbing Juudaime!"

"TSUNA! LAMBO-SAN WANTS MORE FOOD!" Lambo was jumping up and down and tugging at Tsuna's shirt. "And _bleh!_ Bakadera can go die!" Lambo pulled back an eye lid and stuck his tongue out at the hot headed teen.

"If you're going to eat, you must eat _extremely_ healthy food!"

"Haha! Senpai's right, kid! I would suggest milk!"

"Lambo, it's already late! You shouldn't eat now. Instead, why don't you go and sleep? And Gokudera-kun, you should rest up. Onii-san, it's better not to encourage him to eat more than he has already eaten!" Tsuna was quickly replying to all his friends while convincing Lambo to go to bed instead.

"BUT I'M HUNGRY! WHAAAAAAAA!"

Gokudera's eye twitched at the shrieks coming from the baby. He stormed across the room and punched the said boy over the head. Tsuna cringed.

"STUPID COW! STOP DISRUPTING JUUDAIME'S GAME!" Indeed, Tsuna was currently playing a board game against Mukuro and Ryohei. Reflecting back on this, Tsuna realised that Mukuro must've been _very_ bored to agree to play a game against them—and that Gokudera was willing to sit two metres away from him, showed a bit more trust between the two. He smiled softly.

"Kufufu…the cow should go to sleep. He is ruining my victory speech." With that said, Mukuro created Mist Flames to surround Lambo, who began to panic and scream for help from the monsters.

"Mukuro!"

"Whaa-aa…" Lambo's eyes drooped and closed shut. He collapsed on Tsuna's lap in an instant.

"Mukuro what did you do to him!" Tsuna freaked out and stood. He turned Lambo this way and that, only to find out that he was fast asleep. Mukuro looked offended.

"Oya? What did you think I'd do to him? I want some peace as well," he had a defensive tone in his voice. Tsuna sighed and thanked Mukuro after apologising to him.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

G knocked on Giotto's office door, bright and early in the morning. He knew that his boss was probably working on his papers, lounging around, or preparing more missions for them to complete.

"Giotto?"

"Come in, G. Good morning."

"'Morning…er…where are you?" G flung the doors open and looked around with a confused expression on his face. It was clear that the voice came from within, but the owner of it was nowhere in sight.

"Over here," a voice called over from the balcony. He walked over to it curiously and stood at the entrance, not seeing his friend.

"Giotto?"

"Yes?" G finally saw where his boss was. Beyond the safety of the balcony rail, hung Giotto.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" He marched over to him with a scowl.

Giotto brought his body back up from the balcony with a hand. His blond, spiky hair was visible, then his face. He had a sheepish smile on his face as G quickly grasped his shirt and hauled him over.

"I already have enough problems in one day without you just…_hanging_ there!" They were now seated on the chairs on the balcony. G was fuming, arms crossed. His red hair and tattoo made him look scarier than usual. Giotto sighed.

Ignoring him, he said while looking off into the distance, "G, tell me something."

"Hn?" was the growled response.

"Why does everyone, except for us, find it very convenient, to visit us, right now, at this time of the month? Couldn't they have chosen some other time? First _they_ arrive; then the party mishap and Master coming by, and now this."

G frowned. "What…" In answer, Giotto held up the recently opened letter he was saving from falling off the building. G took the paper gently from his friend's fingers as if he were examining a priceless weapon. He looked at the seal, then the letter. He read it quickly and re-read it to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Then he stared at the seal at the top, proving its legitimacy. His face was blank for a moment. Giotto was still looking at the rising sun, already expecting his Guardian's reaction to the letter from a certain woman named Jules.

G slipped the paper back onto the desk slowly and walked to the edge of the balcony, just into Giotto's line of vision. G was shaking.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, YOU BASTARD!" He screamed into the direction of where one of the Guardians slept.

"Language, G…there are other people here as well."

"He is _so _dead!" G ignored Giotto and paced, fuming. "Why does he have to have a damn relative that's like that woman? He better keep her out of our hair!"

"Calm down, G…" Giotto tried to say but was cut off by G, who stormed out the office and slammed the door. Giotto winced at the sharp sound of a crack.

It was going to be one long day in the Vongola mansion again…then his head suddenly snapped up.

"I need to hide that! And that too!" Giotto ran back into his office. "I can't have her messing with those again."

For the rest of the day, the Guardians—every single one of them—was in turmoil.

* * *

><p><strong>Tsuna &amp; Co.<strong>

Tsuna awoke around nine, lazily blinking and snuggling deeper into the blankets. Then he groaned when he remembered that three of his friends were leaving them today. And most likely, many of them were already up and—

_BOOM!_

–Yep…music to his ears. He sat up and yawned before changing his clothes.

"_It wasn't Lambo-san's fault!"_

"_Maa, Gokudera! You shouldn't be too hard on the kid!"_

"_The hell with that! I caught sight of a UMA and he distracted me! That was a once _in a life time chance!" The volume was instantly increased by opening the door.

"WHAAAAAAAA! WHAAAAA! LAMBO-SAN DEMANDS AN APOLOGY!"

Tsuna shut the door quickly and sighed. At least he managed to save his eardrums.

"Why do mornings have to start like this?" he asked himself. Rotating his arms and shaking himself up, he exited his room quickly and charged into the main area.

"EVERYONE! YOU'RE DISTURBING THE OTHERS ON THIS TRAIN!" Tsuna's scolding was louder than all the rest and that must've meant something because they all shut up.

"Juudaime…my apologies…" Gokudera ducked his head in shame.

Tsuna sighed and smiled warmly. "It's alright… Good morning, everyone!"

"Yo! It's a great day, isn't it?" Yamamoto greeted.

"Where is onii-san?"

They shrugged.

"Hibari-san…?"

Their shoulders went up, then down.

"M…Mukuro and Chrome?"

Again, they shrugged.

_Where is everyone?_

"Maa, maa, let's worry about that later! I'm starving! Gokudera, you should eat up, since you'll be leaving for your search soon!"

"You're the one to talk," Gokudera grumbled. "You're leaving too, baseball nut!"

Yamamoto looked surprised for a second before laughing. "Haha! That's true!"

"Of course it's true! Why would I lie?"

Tsuna put Lambo on his shoulders. "Well, if no one minds, I'll get our breakfast!"

"A-Ah, Juudaime, you shouldn't need to! As your right-hand man, I should be the one to do your bidding!"

"Gokudera-kun, stay here!" Tsuna said cheerfully and ran out to the carts with food. The door shut and they were left inside with stunned silence.

"Well Lambo, what do you want to eat?"

"Yippi!" Lambo screamed with joy as Tsuna had him held high while walking. "Lambo-san wants cake!"

Tsuna sighed. About to disagree, he heard something coming from the back of the train. "Lambo, hush."

"Hah?"

"_Extreme, you shouldn't do that, Pineapple-Head…!" a_ barely audible voice screamed. Tsuna had to strain his ears to catch every word. Mukuro must have replied because the next words Ryohei said were, _"But that's not good for their health…! You need to extremely stop…!"_

Then he began to hear screaming and shouts coming from people who weren't his Guardians: These people were the passengers who had boarded the train with them. The train's message runner gasped for breath as he opens the door that separated the two carts from each other. His hair was ragged, covering his eyes and he had on dishevelled clothes as if he just woke up a while ago.

Tsuna knew from his training with Reborn that the boy probably wanted a _lot_ of water. Before he could move to get some, the young boy produced his own canteen of liquid. He took two large gulped and looked at Tsuna.

"Sir, I think it's best if you stay in your cabins!"

"Huh? Why?"

"Snakes as big as humans have raided the back of the train! It's very dangerous!"

"S-S-SNAKES?" Tsuna yelped.

"Tsuna? Did you say you wanted snacks instead?" Yamamoto asked from inside when he heard his friend shout out somethin that sounded like a question.

"No you idiot! Snakes! Something's happening to Juudaime and we have to rescue him!"

Tsuna heard them running towards him and sooner than anyone can say "Reborn", they were by his side, looking around for possible assaults.

"Mukuro's up to his tricks again! We have to stop him!" Tsuna quickly explained to them as he came up with the conclusion. The runner looked at them confused, since he understood absolutely nothing.

"Er…?"

"Stay here, brat!" Gokudera growled.

"I am no brat…" He didn't manage to finish his retort because the three boys plus the small baby were already running towards the danger.

"GYAAPPPIII! HAHAH! THIS IS SO FUN. I CAN'T BELIEVE I-PIN'S MISSING THIS!" Lambo screamed as they sped past the curious passengers who didn't believe in the runner who tried to alert them. Tsuna wanted to keep them as oblivious as possible.

In just five minutes, they reached the last few carts, where the panic began. People were scrambling around, trying to get away from the snakes. Tsuna opened the door and a pile of bodies poured out, trying to run away from the foe.

"Aah!"

Gokudera became anxious when he saw that his boss was being overwhelmed by a flood of human bodies.

"Get away from Juudaime!" He jumped above the people.

Suddenly, everything disappeared and he fell to the ground. "Ow…huh?" Looking around, he found that they were in a large storage room with random supplies.

"Ahaha…seems like it was an illusion!" Yamamoto was on the floor, rubbing the back of his head. In his right hand was Shigure Kintoki.

"Illusions? Damn it! How did I fall under that again!" Gokudera scowled and looked for the culprit. The first person he saw was Chrome holding her trident to the floor. She looked nervously around her. Then he saw that Ryohei was doing push-ups on the floor. Everything else about the room was perfectly fine, except for the fact that people from both ends of the other carts were looking at them through the small, round window. He looked to the girl again.

"Oi! Did you do this?" He got up to his feet and walked towards Chrome. She took a small step back and shook her head five times in quick succession.

"I was the one who stopped it," she said defensively. "Mukuro-sama was playing around again…"

"Tch! Where is he!"

"He's in the room," Tsuna said calmly and turned his head. "Mukuro, you can show yourself now."

"Where?" Yamamoto wondered.

"Kufufufufu~ Right here…" Mist gathered at the far corner of the room and a small body appeared. It was the same boy they saw earlier, only this time he looked well kept and his hair was out of his face. His right eye held the kanji character _six_.

"Mukuro-sama…I'm sorry…it just seemed to rude to keep Boss suspended in mid air like that…"

"I forgive you, Nagi. Kufufu."

"Mukuro! Why did you lead us here?" Tsuna asked.

"Kufufufu…it's just like the Decimo to realise where I was hiding…" Mukuro looked disappointed for a moment.

"You're not acting like a slave at all!" Gokudera interrupted angrily.

"I don't think now's the time to discuss that." Yamamoto patted Gokudera's tense shoulders. He glared at the happy dude.

"You be quiet!"

Mukuro let out his chuckle. "I thought it would be fun to amuse everyone before I left, leaving the ride to be the most boring one in history."

"You make it sound as if it was only enjoyable with you on it!"

"Kufufu."

_I don't like where this is going,_ Tsuna thought nervously and stood with a shaking Lambo in his hands. He watched Mukuro's movements.

"What are you planning?" he asked suspiciously, but at the same time, wondering if what Mukuro was about to do was fun.

"Kufufu…" He disappeared.

"That bastard!"

"After him!" Tsuna cried. He gave Lambo to Ryohei, who was now hyped up, and followed his instincts to where he knew Mukuro would be. Tsuna opened a door and was faced by loud noises of the outside before shutting it again, to enter the quiet space of the train.

"Mukuro!" he whispered. Mukuro showed himself as an almost transparent body. Tsuna could see the blue haired teen chuckle softly before pointing with a finger to a little boy who was just waking up.

Suddenly, a fist knocked quietly on the window next to the boy of around ten years of age. Curious, like any other child, he climbed onto his knees on the seat and peered through. What he saw made him scream and cry for his mother.

Tsuna ran to the window and saw a bodiless arm waving. There was even blood dripping from the severed end.

_Mukuro—you!"_ Tsuna stared at Mukuro in horror.

Then across the cart a woman's cat carrier was falling off its shelf above the seats. Tsuna's eyes widened. Someone was just walking by and would be hit by that if it fell. He silently darted towards the falling carrier and caught it. He was tall enough so that if he stood, he could support the cat carrier's front end while the other was still on the shelf. The kid walking simply went in between the gap made by Tsuna and ignored his surroundings. Without anyone noticing, he placed it back onto its proper shelf. The cat yowled loudly. The woman who owned the cat glared at Tsuna.

"Young man! What do you think you are doing to my poor, sweet kitty?"

Gokudera, Ryohei, Yamamoto, and Lambo appeared and observed the scene. One side of the room was a little boy who was crying his eyes out and on the other end was a woman in an argument with the train conductor about someone stealing her bag. Then they witnessed the described bag floating in mid air, and then falling. Yamamoto's eyes narrowed as he ran to catch it before sliding into third.

"Safe!"

Gokudera face palmed.

Somewhere else, Tsuna was being scolded by a man for tipping his espresso. Tsuna was currently bobbing his head and apologising for things Mukuro did on purpose.

Then some things settled down.

"Where did Mukuro go?" Tsuna wondered when his friends surrounded him. They murmured to themselves.

"Last I saw him, he was in that corner," Yamamoto pointed to the corner Tsuna had first seen him in.

"I saw him there to the _extreme!" _Ryohei energetically jabbed a finger in the middle of the ceiling. They all looked up and saw nothing.

Gokudera rolled his eyes at Ryohei. His eyes lit up the next second as he turned to Tsuna to say, "Juudaime, I saw him near the door. Maybe he went through there?"

Tsuna nodded quickly. "That's possible. Let's go!" Chrome joined them with Lambo in her arms and they were off.

"Hey, you know where that guy is," Gokudera accused Chrome. She bowed her head with a blush.

"Sorry…I promised Mukuro-sama to not spoil his fun…"

Tsuna smiled comfortably and calmed Gokudera down before he could get into a fit. "It's alright, Chrome. We'll just have to find him on our own."

"Thank you, Boss…"

"But this doesn't answer where Hibari went to the _extreme!"_ Ryohei shouted.

"He's probably just on the roof or something!" Gokudera growled.

"Let's go!" Out of the corner of his eye, Tsuna spotted a flash of blue before it disappeared from sight. They followed their boss hurriedly.

In the next compartment, a man's newspaper was melting, which caused him to panic and shout out in alarm. Luckily, most people in this area were still asleep. Yamamoto walked up to the guy with a friendly smile. Tsuna dashed towards them as well.

"What is the meaning of this nonsense?" The man exclaimed and dropped the gooey paper.

"A-Ah…" Tsuna tried his best to explain to the man that it was an illusion, but without the word illusion in his Italian dictionary, it was pretty hard.

"Gokudera—" his friend nodded and began to shout at the passenger. Tsuna was beginning to tell Gokudera not to be so mean when he saw a small, baby snake slithering on the ground near a family. He ran and jumped on the snake, successfully catching it. Now all he had to do was throw away this little thing that weighed a ton…

"What!" He yelped and looked at what he was trying to pick up. The snake was the same size as it was before, which meant that he was able to close his fist around its body with the length of one arm But it was now twice his weight. He grunted quietly as to avoid causing a panic in the room and tried to scoot back with the snake in tow. Ryohei noticed what he was doing and became excited at the thought of battling with a snake.

"Shhh!" Tsuna made gestures with his head so that Ryohei knew that he need help, but no noise.

Ryohei nodded and punched the air. He jogged towards Tsuna and bent down to retrieve the snake. It lifted off the ground for a single centimetre before being released with a soft thump and a hiss from the snake in disapproval.

"EEP!" Tsuna backed away.

"Extremely heavy," Ryohei grunted and tried again. With his teeth gritted and straining muscles, his voice had managed to stay quiet. "Aaarrrgg…"

Tsuna gasped when the snake tried to turn its head around to bite Ryohei, but Tsuna quickly clamped the snake's mouth shut with his hands. Ryohei nodded his thanks and continued to lift the snake off the ground. Tsuna helped by pulling its head mercilessly. Yamamoto spotted them and waved a hand, saying that he'll help. He left Gokudera in a heated argument with the man whose newspaper was melted.

"I told you, it's an illusion!" He snapped in a whispered tone.

"But how do you explain this!" He pointed at the blob on his table. Gokudera's fingers twitched for the dynamites he hid so he could simply bomb the guy but he refrained himself from doing so. Instead, he unconsciously released his stormy, fearful aura. The man paled and looked around for the source of the uncomfortable feeling he had.

"It is an illusion." Gokudera said in a slow, dangerous voice. This time, the man readily agreed with him. Mukuro scowled when they stopped making a fuss. He looked for his next victim. He smiled cruelly when he found it.

Tsuna was still struggling with the snake when the little girl roughly around eight stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes to meet Tsuna's brown ones. Then the wide eyes turned to what Tsuna was holding. A wide, childish grin spread across her face as the girl shrieked and raised her hand to pet the snake. Tsuna and Yamamoto froze as the hand made contact. They held their breath as the girl laughed and squealed and the snake.

"Why is a kid playing with a snake!" Tsuna hissed to Yamamoto. He shrugged nervously and reached to remove the kid's hand.

"H-Hey, that's not a good idea," Yamamoto whispered to the child. Then the girl's little brother, around seven years of age, awoke from the noise and looked at the snake fearfully, unlike his sister, who was energetic about it. Tears began to make themselves visible at the corners of his eyes. His lips trembled and his little fist clenched the sleeve of his mother, who sat next to him, reading a book intently

"M-Mamaaaaa!" The boy cried hard and long. The mother snapped out of her book addiction and looked at what her little boy was pointing at. She screamed and the book went flying out of her hands with shock.

"Husband!"

"Hm?" He looked at his wife, then at the snake. Now, all three teens were frozen as the man's eyes stared at the snake. Then they widened in surprise and alarm.

_"SNAAAAAKE!"_

"GYAHAHA! Did someone say spaghetti?" Lambo asked excitedly. He ran to them and looked at what Ryohei, Tsuna, and Yamamoto were holding. In the middle was Ryohei, then the end was held by Yamamoto, and Tsuna had the head.

"Lambo!" He loosened his grip on the snapping mouth and the snake's head was free. It snapped at Lambo, who was luckily out of range. But the sharp teeth were enough to scare him.

"Tsuuna! SAVE LAMBO-SAN!"

"HIE!"

Tsuna took in a deep breath and calmed his panicking eyes. "Hang on—this snake is just an illusion…"

The rest of the passengers realised the danger they were in and screamed.

_It's an illusion, it's an illusion, it's an illusion, it's an illusion, it's an illusion! _Tsuna thought with determination, ignoring the screams around him.

He opened his eyes and saw that there was no snake. He beamed at his success.

"SAWADA! This snake is _EXTREMELY _heavy!" Ryohei roared.

"_What!"_ Tsuna banged his head to the ground.

"Juudaime, be careful! There's a snake right beside you!"

Tsuna groaned. Great—only _he_ saw through the illusion. "Come on, guys! That's an illusion!"

"Ahh! Snake!"

"Heelp me!"

"Mooommyy!"

"My son!"

"_AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"_

* * *

><p>When Ryohei, Tsuna, Yamamoto, <em>and<em> Gokudera finally managed to toss the snake off the train and sincerely apologising to everyone, and then running to escape them into the next compartment, Yamamoto asked, "Tsuna, couldn't you have just burned it?"

"Th-That's true…" Tsuna's face flushed when he realised that there was such a simple way to dispose of the snake instead of going heave-ho. "I'm sorry for causing you all to do that for nothing!"

"It's alright, Sawada! I got an _extreme _work out!"

_CRASH!_

"AAAH!" someone screamed. They swirled around to see plates flying over the heads of a group of women. They huddled together, trying to shield themselves from the plates that were threatening to fall on their heads.

"Tsuna, let's help them!"

Tsuna nodded and they quickly ran over to the group.

At the back of his mind, Tsuna wondered why he was so ready to rush into danger. Then he shrugged it off.

Just when the plates were going to fall after Mukuro stopped his illusion, Yamamoto and Tsuna caught the plates. Tsuna had a plate land on his head and one in each hand. Yamamoto took on a similar pose. "There we go," he laughed. Tsuna held his breath and concentrated on not letting the plates fall, even though they were simply illusions. Yamamoto handed the plates to the women and helped Tsuna with his, seeing that he was unable to move.

"Thanks a lot, Yamamoto!"

"Juudaime! Are you alright! I saw that Mukuro head over to somewhere else! We should go after him!" Before the ladies could even think to apologise, the group sprinted off to the next connection door.

* * *

><p>After an hour of chasing Mukuro and causing panic among the guests, they finally caught up to Mukuro, who was in the middle of making a bloody mess of a compartment.<p>

Tsuna tackled him in Hyper Dying Will mode and manage to stop him. He dragged Mukuro into the next compartment, which was filled with luggage. The rest of his family followed with Chrome shutting the door behind them.

"Mukuro, stop."

"Kufufufu…" Mukuro resisted and Tsuna had to dodge the trident. Gokudera growled.

"Please, Mukuro. I'm going to knock you out if you don't stop your illusions. We're in enough trouble as it is."

"Oya? What are you talking about?" The rest of his Guardians were just as confused as the illusionist was.

"Thanks to you," Tsuna began, "we ruined twenty compartments starting from the back, lost half of the passenger's luggage due to an unfortunate hole in the wall made by Lambo, and to add to that, we scared everyone to the point where they'll have nightmares of walking dolls and snakes trying to eat them. Not to mention flying plates with evil laughs. Did I point out that Primo will have to pay for everything? I have a feeling he won't be a happy boss when he hears of it."

"It was just for fun," Muikuro muttered.

"Your idea of fun is _EXTREME!_ We need to have a boxing match one day!"Ryohei looked hopefully at Mukuro, who decided that to ignore him was the best idea.

Gokudera paled at the thought and sympathised for Giotto. Then he remembered that Mukuro was still a danger towards his boss. Then he _also_ remembered the bet he and Mukuro made. He smirked and walked up to them.

"Oi, Mukuro! I order you to behave until we get off!" Gokudera demanded. Tsuna looked confused for a moment before remembering.

"Ahaha! I forgot that Gokudera had Mukuro as a servant!"

"That's not fair! Lambo-san wants one too!"

A vein near Mukuro's temple twitched violently. He chuckled. Very well, Tsunayoshi. I will quit my game, only because it has become boring."

Tsuna relaxed and released his Hyper Mode after retreating a few feet from Mukuro.

"Well, let's go back, shall we?"

"Herbivores…"

Tsuna's back became straight and stiffened. Hibari was right behind them.

"H-Hi, Hibari-san!"

"For disturbing my nap with your ruckus… I will bite you to death."

"Kufufu. I'll take my leave now," Mukuro laughed mischievously. "Nagi, come with me?"

"Hai, Mukuro-sama." The two illusionists disappeared, leaving the others behind for their fate.

"Aahh!" Tsuna screamed and ran when Hibari raised the pair of tonfa. Sure, Tsuna could have fought him there, but the first thing his feet did was run away from the devil that was right behind him.

"Are we playing tag with Hibari it?" Ryohei roared as he caught up to Tsuna.

"You lawn head, we're not playing tag! Protect Juudaime!"

Train after train they ran, hoping to reach their VIP rooms before Hibari caught up. That took a few minutes, with some nasty bites at their heels, to reach it. Right when Tsuna had the door open, the train lurched to a sudden halt. All of the Guardians tumbled in, colliding with each other.

Hibari, Mukuro, and Chrome were the only ones illusionists, because there were already comfortably seated on the chairs; Hibari, because he was paying attention when the conductor announced that they were going to be stopping at the next town in two minutes.

Hibari smirked as he approached the tangled mess. His prey was caught.

"Uhm, can't we talk this through?" Tsuna laughed weakly.

"Heheh…yeah…Hibari…there's no need to get angry…"

"Juudaime, run and we'll hold him off," Gokudera whispered. Tsuna gave him a look that said, "Don't be ridiculous."

"Fight me or be bitten to death."

"Can we pass on both?" Tsuna smiles weakly. "After all…Gokudera-kun and Yamamoto have to leave right now; otherwise they'll miss their stop…"

They somehow managed to convince Hibari to let three of his victims off the train, although Yamamoto could not figure out why.

Tsuna, who was on the train, knew the reason. It was because the prefect enjoyed beating him into the colours of the rainbow the most, since he was the "ring leader" of the herbivores.

_I hope you guys have a better time than I am right now,_ he thought while looking at the ceiling dizzily through one eye.

* * *

><p>Gokudera glared at his surroundings. They were on a platform with many other passengers getting off and on. Footsteps from all over thumped onto the wooden platform before entering the large station. Children were playing with each other as their parents waited for family members or friends to pick them up. Some just trudged along, coming home from a long week of work at another city. Large overcoats took over most of the space, unlike their plain shirts and light coats to ward off the drizzling rain that was due tomorrow.<p>

He cringed slightly at the sight of the battered train. "Come on…" Gokudera glowered at the floor and made his way to the station himself, to see if they could find a map.

"Wow, this place is amazing, ne, Gokudera!"

"Kufufu. This is nothing."

Yamamoto's head snapped to Mukuro when he sensed illusions at work and caught Mukuro's arm before he could escape. "Hey, Mukuro, Tsuna said that we need to work together. You can't just go off on your own." Mukuro gave the cheerful baseball freak a glare.

"What's taking you two so long!" Gokudera demanded and stormed back to them, scaring a group of people who were taking a picture. "We have to finish as soon as possible!"

"Oya, who made you in charge?"

"As Juudaime's right hand man, I am in charge of the Guardians! That includes you, even if I hate to admit it!"

"Don't mix me up with the mafia!" Mukuro growled back.

"Maa, maa!" Yamamoto raised his hands and stood between them. Sweat rolled down his back at he tried to calm the two who looked ready to fight. "Like you said, the sooner we finish the better, right?"

Gokudera paused and saw that his own words were coming back at him. He straightened and ignored Mukuro. Instead, he took out his anger on Yamamoto, who seemed to be perfectly fine with it.

"Che! Why am I even stuck with this bastard anyways?"

"Like I want to be with you either," Mukuro retorted, but followed them nonetheless.

"Well, we didn't get to choose Gokudera, so stop complaining."

Gokudera was about to snap back at Yamamoto, but stopped himself when he saw his face. He turned back to face the front.

Yamamoto's expression had told him, "I want to stay with Tsuna too, you know?" They all wanted to stay with him… When they found their item, they were going to get on the first express train they could find and ride all the way to San Cataldo, even if they needed to hijack the train! Gokudera kicked a stone from his path and pushed one of the many doors to the station wide open.

Inside were people behind desks, talking to travellers planning to buy tickets for the trains. There were benches for people to rest or nap while waiting for their train. There was even a small area for tourist or people new in town. Gokudera headed there. Dodging people and shouting out insults to those who suggested to him to shove their way through elsewhere, they finally reached that table. He slammed his palm flat open on the table, causing the young boy and girl to jump in surprise.

"Y-Yes?"

"Give me a map!"

"J-Just a moment!" The boy squeaked and quickly dug for one.

"Hey, Gokudera," Yamamoto whispered, "There's no reason for you to be angry at them."

"Tch!"

Then a teenager around fifteen walked to the group cautiously.

"Is there anything you need help with?" she asked them politely. The way how the children sighed with relief told them that she was in charge.

She was wearing a pair of pants, unlike the females they have met in this era. She had on a plain-collared shirt and a black jacket. She had on a hat that covered her brows and eyes that were brown, just like her hair.

"We're just looking for a map," Yamamoto grinned at her and stuck out an arm. "I'm Takeshi Yamamoto, nice to meet you!" She stared at his hand, then shook it.

"We don't see many foreigners around here often. Sorry if I'm staring at you."

"Haha! No problem! This is Hayato Gokudera, and Mukuro Rokudo." He pointed to his two companions in turn. Gokudera shot him another glare.

"Don't just go giving out our names!"

"Maa, there shouldn't be a problem! She looks like a nice person!"

"M-Mister, here's the map you were asking for…" the boy stuttered and weakly held up a folded map. His legs were wobbling at the sight of being on the receiving end of the glares coming from the silver haired teen.

Gokudera dropped the glare when he realised that the kid was going to pee his pants if he didn't stop glaring. "Thanks," he muttered.

The boy blinked and his shakes came to an abrupt halt. He grinned. "You're welcome!"

Now it was Gokudera's turn to stare. _Talk about mood swings,_ he mused when the kid started to talk and…talk…nonstop.

"Well, aren't we going to go find some V-Metal?" Mukuro coughed. V-Metal was his short form for Vanadio Metal. V-Metal was the metal which would be used to create the inner layers of the time machine.

Gokudera nodded and left the table with a wave. He turned and didn't notice the teen's curious eyes at the mention of V-Metal. Yamamoto, being the observant one, saw it and paused.

She decided to speak. "You're...looking for V-Metal?"

Yamamoto stiffened in shock. "You know Japanese?"

She grinned and continued in Italian. "Well, I _am_ working at a station, aren't I? Sure, we're in the middle of Italy and leagues away from Japan, but what's the harm of learning a language or two? I like to travel a lot. I've tried to learn the language."

Yamamoto shook his head in wonder. "Haha! Well, Vanadio-Metal is what we are looking for. Have you heard of it?"

"Well," she hesitated.

"Oi! Yamamoto! What's keeping you?" Gokudera shouted from the other door. Yamamoto waved a hand absentmindedly. Other than that, he ignored him. This made Gokudera actually stop and see what was going on. The girl was shifting uncomfortably, never allowing her eyes to meet Yamamoto's determined and questioning ones. Gokudera narrowed his own eyes. He and Mukuro walked back to them, skilfully surrounding the booth yet there were only three of them.

"She knows about V-Metal," Yamamoto said. "But she's not telling me." At this, Gokudera became more alert than he was a moment ago.

"Damn woman, keeping information away from us. Where is it?"

"I don't know!" she blurted out. The two kids looked at them worriedly but stayed where they were.

"You know _something_. Please, do you think you could tell us what you know?" Yamamoto smiled, trying to encourage her to speak up.

She hesitated for another moment, and then whispered, "The young man in the high estates has some."

"Where can we find him? What does he look like? And how do you know?" Gokudera shot out questions as fast as he could blink.

"U-Upper-East side of town…the white house, third on the street. H-He's about twenty, has dark blond hair with green streaks, a-and…well…"

Mukuro butted in, "Hurry up. You're causing a scene with your violence. The security guard is getting shifty. Not that I mind, since I'm getting bored."

"You heard him!" Gokudera warned softly and dangerously, something he's only recently mastered. She took another deep breath and let it out just as shakily.

"I uhm…I sort of…work for him…?"

"What?" Yamamoto looked puzzled. "You work for him? Aren't you working here?"

"Well, no, this is just a side job. When he has shipments coming in, I'm supposed to get them from the dock and—" She snapped her mouth shut, unwilling to go on. "Go on! Get out! I told you what you wanted! Don't you even dare mention me!"

Gokudera didn't even get a chance to say that she didn't tell them her name before Mukuro and Yamamoto dragged him out the door.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-24th**_


	18. Storm Brewing

**RECAP: **Tsuna & Co needs to help Talbot gather supplies to make a new time machine so they can go home. They are separated so they can work faster.

Gokudera, Mukuro, and Yamamoto have arrived at Salemi. After getting information out of a girl at the train station, they head to the location of Vanadio Metal (V-Metal), not sure who or what they will meet.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Eighteen<strong>

Gokudera shrugged off the arms holding him and scowled. Yamamoto grinned cheerfully as Mukuro rolled his eyes and walked ahead.

"Let's find something to eat! I smell something delicious up ahead!"

"Kufufufu…_that_ is one thing I can agree with." Mukuro stretched his muscles and walked on. He didn't want to admit it, but whatever that Octopus-Head did actually helped him relax a bit.

Gokudera scowled. "We don't have time to eat," he said. "We have to go to the location and grab the V-Metal he has kept there. That's the only way for us to get moving so we might be able to catch up to Juudaime."

"Are you sure that's even possible? Didn't Primo say that our tickets only went as far as here and we couldn't buy new ones to bring us to Tsuna's location?"

"Tch…" Gokudera observed the streets and the rooftops for possible attackers or useful escape routes. Training under so many different tutors over the year meant that he was forced into the habit to look for sudden pop quizzes thrown his way—many included sneak attacks at very random moments.

The thing that struck him odd was that it was different than their other locations. The streets weren't crowded and the ground was packed with stone to keep the mud off and they looked relatively clean. The houses were decent, not at all like the small and shabby,two floored houses they've seen so far. Upon a closer inspection, he also noticed that the people who _did_ walk the streets held themselves with dignity and an air of wealth.

"Hm~ Everyone looks happy here," Yamamoto observed. He waved at a group of young adults who politely smiled back.

"Of course—they have nothing to worry about." Gokudera continued to scowl. "They have enough money to last a few generations and no one dangerous out to get them."

Yamamoto laughed in reply. "I guess you're right. Oh, look! Mukuro found us a place to eat!" Sure enough, Mukuro was standing causally beside a large eating house. It was three stories high and well decorated.

"Kufufu. I have a table reserved for us on the third floor."

"Why are you being so nice?" Gokudera gave the illusionist a suspicious look.

Mukuro shrugged with a smirk. "It won't be too bad to have you in my debt once in a while. Kufufufu..."

Gokudera snorted but followed him in. Mukuro seemed to have made friends with the manager, since they were immediately ushered upstairs.

"H-Here you are, s-sirs!" The manager stuttered, his eyes shifting from Mukuro to Gokudera—probably wondering who was scarier: the one who somehow got him so scared that he would give them a free meal and three rooms, or the one who had a look threatening to punch him black and blue if he did something wrong and then stuff his mouth with dynamite.

The manager reluctantly followed them into the private room that gave them a nice view of the entire town. In the centre was a dining table covered with a white table cloth and a vase filled with begonia flowers. To the right was a landscape portrait hanging on the pale green wall. Near that was another table, this one a bit smaller than the big one. To their left were couches and a low table for relaxing. On the table was an ash tray for customers who wanted a smoke. Gokudera made his way to the middle table with Yamamoto following.

"Why are you following me?" Gokudera grumbled.

Yamamoto cocked his head. "You're funny, Gokudera. I need somewhere to sit as well, hahaha!"

"Well, sit on that one!" He jabbed a finger to the right.

"Kufufufu. Don't you dare, unless you want an early death." Yamamoto turned back to Gokudera with a grin. He made himself comfortable and looked at the manager of the place with a smile.

Meanwhile, the manager was trying to understand what had just happened. _I need to learn whatever language they are speaking, _he thought to himself. He already knew English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and of course, Italian. But he supposed that if he wanted even more customers, he should make an effort to learn the eastern languages. He then noticed that they were looking at him as if expecting an answer.

"What would you like to order?" He sounded unsure. It seemed to be the correct thing to say, since he was immediately bombarded with requests for this and that. He quickly took out a pad of paper and pen to jot it all down. It had never even crossed his mind that these _teenagers_ might not be able to pay for the meals they ordered if they had to pay up.

When he was finally allowed to leave, he did so quickly, but not before he witnessed Gokudera and Mukuro glaring at each other from across the room. _Oh please god, don't let them start a fight in here!_

_BAM!_

The door closes and Gokudera's eyebrows snap together in concentration. Yamamoto sighed and simply closed his eyes. Mukuro grinned.

Gokudera was trying to fight off whatever illusion he felt Mukuro cast. So far, he was successful in evading it but he wasn't sure how long he could last. His record was two days. He hoped Mukuro won't keep at it for that long.

Yamamoto was handling it easily. Mukuro's smile turned to a frown when it didn't affect them. "The lot of you will be the death of me. I need some victims to play around with…"

"Since when were you so… bloodthirsty?" Yamamoto wondered aloud. "I thought that was Hibari's job."

"He's not bloodthirsty, idiot. He's just looking for people who are too weak to fight back to make it seem as though he is a thousand times more stronger than them."

Mukuro narrowed his eyes at Gokudera. Yamamoto scratched his head inwardly and wondered what he should do.

"No fighting," he scolded like a mother to her sons. The tone of voice was so oddly strict the two of them stared at Yamamoto. "Or I'll bite you to death!" he finished cheerfully. Mukuro snapped out of it at those words and Gokudera face-palmed.

"Why the heck are you using that prefect's words? You know how much Mukuro hates him after losing—" Gokudera stopped himself but the damage was already done. O_h God. _

"Eto…Gokudera…I think you…"

"I know…" But it was too late to take back his words. Gokudera got his weapons ready just in case Mukuro decided to go crazy.

* * *

><p>If someone who didn't know that such destructive humans existed happened to walk in at that very moment, they would have thought that they walked into hell's private torture chambers.<p>

Mukuro had redecorated the room so that black and grey drapes which look mysteriously like the substance of a demon hung on the walls. The bright walls turned black and red. The ceiling and floor looked like black holes that will swallow them up the moment they let their guard down. Real snakes fell from the air and slithered on to the ground. The shadows seem to be alive as they slowly peeled themselves off the walls and went towards Mukuro.

Uri snarled and became twice her regular size by puffing her hair. Gokudera's eyes narrowed.

"Did I hear you correctly?" Mukuro asked. "Kufufu…you're doomed."

Mukuro attacked first. His red eye changed to the one of combat and he charged towards the bomber. Gokudera in turn dodged Mukuro's trident with practiced ease. He activated his Vongola Gear and used Flame Arrow to make Mukuro back off.

"Tch," Gokudera lowered his weapon and waited for another millisecond before the dynamites he laid on the floor right where Mukuro was standing exploded.

Below, they could hear the nervous shouts of the other people in the building. Yamamoto decided that he should interfere before they caused too much damage.

"Maa, maa—" Something whistled near his ear from the window. He jumped back with Shigure Kintoki in his hand. His eyes narrowed as he looked at what almost hit him: an arrow was lodged on the wall, still vibrating from the impact. Gokudera and Mukuro were so into their fight that they didn't even know someone had shot an arrow right into their room, at the dart board's heart.. bulls-eye.

Then Mukuro noticed something change in Gokudera's expression. There was confusion and Mukuro was sure he wasn't the source of it.

Both separated from each other so there were two metres of space between them. Yamamoto was in the middle of pulling the arrow shaft.

"It's…_tight."_

"Che! Just untie the paper, idiot!"

Yamamoto chuckled and nodded. "I didn't think of that." He reached for the white piece of paper—no, _cloth_—from the arrow.

With a pull it came free. The cloth was made out of stiff material that had an odour to it. Mukuro walked to the window to see if he could find any traces from where the arrow was shot. Gokudera on the other hand, went to Yamamoto to see who could have delivered this in such an odd fashion.

Yamamoto was about to hand it over to Gokudera, since he knew how to read Italian, when a sharp pain in his hand forced him to jerk and drop the cloth onto the floor.

"What are you doing?" Gokudera bent down to pick it up.

"Don't touch it!"

Gokudera froze and looked up at Yamamoto through his bangs. Mukuro glanced back at them to see the problem.

"What—?"

"I think it's poisoned," Yamamoto raised his right hand and winced. He brought it back down. Gokudera pulled Yamamoto's arm back up.

"Ite!"

"Sorry," he said in a gruff voice and examined the hand. It was rapidly turning purple from the fingertips to the wrist. "Where is it hurting?"

"My entire hand—it's spreading towards my elbow." Pain filled Yamamoto's eyes although he tried not to show it. Gokudera scoffed and let go of the arm. He turned to Mukuro, who was standing beside them. He was looking at the hand curiously.

"What, do you know this or something?"

"Kufufufu. As a matter of fact, I do. It's a deadly poison and could kill someone slowly wthin a few days. That is, depending on the quantity we're talking about."

Yamamoto laughed softly. "That doesn't sound good."

"Kufufu, no it doesn't," Mukuro said with an amused smile. "The antidote is rare, and we don't have access to it right now. You can slow down the process by putting animal blood over it and then wrapping it with bandages." He received sceptical glances. With this, he sighed and explained about the nature of the poison.

"It feeds off blood. As long as there is blood, it will keep on going. The poison entered your body to take the blood, but it can easily take blood that is external. That way, it will feed on _that_ blood instead of your own. Human blood would work best, but I don't think you're going to find a donor here unless you kill the man first."

"Then shouldn't he just dunk his hand in animal blood?"

"Kufu. His choice. But even if he does that, it has the same effect as simply putting blood on the skin and bandaging it. In fact, if he does that, he won't have to carry a bucket full of blood wherever we go."

"Hey, don't just talk as if I'm not here, hahahah…besides, how does…" Yamamoto paused and cleared his his head with a shake. "How does a little bit of blood do better than a bucket full?"

"Oya? Are you that dense? I heard that people _do_ sell blood ointments around here. They are filled with blood."

Gokudera looked a bit green. "Blood ointments? Why the hell would people sell those?!"

Mukuro shrugged and gave them a wicked grin. Before he could reply, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," Mukuro ordered. Yamamoto looked around frantically.

"Wait! What are we going to do about your illusions? They're not going to stand it!"

"So?"

"So? What –"

"Sirs—oh my!"

At the door was a waiter bearing their food on the trolley. At the sight of the room, the man fainted. The three teens blinked at the fallen man. "He's worse than Tsunayoshi."

"What do you mean by that? Don't you dare compare Juudaime to that low life! Of course Juudaime is better."

"As in," Mukuro amended, "Tsunayoshi would scream my name in terror before fainting. This man didn't even bother to acknowledge me first." He sounded a bit miffed that the man didn't take a look at the illusionist who casted the nightmare.

Then another thump hit the ground. Gokudera and Mukuro's head snapped to their left. The previously standing Yamamoto was now on the floor.

"Oya, looks like we were a bit too careless. Kufufu…"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-29th**_


	19. Oh, this is great! JUUUST great! Tch!

**Chapter Nineteen**

Yamamoto slowly regained consciousness after a few hours from receiving the poison. He groaned and turned his head away from the light. Light? Shouldn't it be dark? He forced his eyes to open slightly and saw that Gokudera was standing over him with a candle. He had a scowl over his face.

"Yo…" Yamamoto said with a weak smile. Gokudera scowled some more.

"Your idiotic brain almost got you killed. You're lucky Mukuro was willing to help. Otherwise you would be long dead."

"E-Eh? What do you mean? Mukuro said—"

"—_Mukuro _said that depending on the poison, you will either die today or next week." Gokudera rolled his eyes. "Apparently, you had enough in you to kill a full grown elephant."

"Hahaha…sorry, sorry. Hope you didn't lose sleep over me."

"Tch! Of course I didn't! I just happened to come in to check on you before heading to bed. Juudaime won't like it if I just left you there."

Yamamoto smiled inwardly, since he was too tired to do it physically. Then he fell back to sleep. "Don't forget to bring me milk…_Zzz…"_

* * *

><p>The next morning Yamamoto awoke, he was feeling much better. His hand was numb but it was no more than a mild annoyance. He suffered worse from baseball than this. He stretched out his long limbs. "Hnnn-Ah."<p>

His wrinkled shirt had a torn sleeve—probably the one Gokudera and Mukuro used to bandage his arm. He laughed. "I guess they didn't have time to look for anything else. I wonder where they went." He opened the door and bumped into Mukuro.

"Oya? Looks like you lived after all."

"Morning!"

"Kufufufu."

"Where's Gokudera?"

Mukuro stepped pass Yamamoto to enter the room. "I don't know. Maybe bullying the kitchen staff for food. Kufufufufufu. We won't be staying here for long."

"Why not?"

"Oya," Mukuro crossed his legs on top of the table and sat back. "We won't want another near mishap to happen again. The message was clearly a warning."

Yamamoto frowned. "We're leaving?"

"Who said anything about leaving, baseball freak?" Gokudera demanded from the doorway. "We're gonna bomb that bastard till he's ash and then take the V-Metal!"

"Uh…" Yamamoto scratched his head in confusion. "How are the two cases related?"

Gokudera stare at him and then shook his head in exasperation. He went to the table, where he had carefully laid out the cloth. He pointed to it and said, "Get out or you die. And I don't think they mean this eating house. Someone knows that we're here for and doesn't want us around. I'll show them how Juudaime's right hand man acts in response to that!" He became so fired up, Yamamoto thought that he might've seen a light in the background.

"Hahaha..." He winced and looked at his arm.

"Kufufu. It will hurt once in a while. You're not free of it yet. Until we get the antidote, you'll be feeling that for a while."

"You still haven't told us what the antidote is!" Gokduera growled.

"Kufufufufu..."

_Knock knock knock!_

This time however, whoever was responsible for their food did not rush in after knocking. Most likely, they've heard of what these teenagers do to the people who visit them.

Yamamoto opened the door with a bright smile. "Good morning!"

There was a boy just a few years younger than them standing outside, looking very much like a frightened rabbit. He was wearing a brown shirt and black pants. On his head was a hat that matched his chestnut hair.

"U-Uh-Uhm...M-Morning...?" he squeaked.

Yamamoto symapthised for him and took the food. "Thanks, you can leave now."

The boy looked grateful and sprinted off.

"Che," Gokudera snorted after Yamamoto closed the door.

"Maa, you scared them, so of course they're not going to be excited to see us, hahaha!"

Gokudera rolled his eyes and glared at Mukuro. "Well?"

Mukuro seemed to be debating whether he should speak. He opened his mouth. "Kufufufu." This earned him a confused look from Yamamoto and an angry one from Gokudera. After another dramatic pause, he said, "The man we're looking for should still be in town."

"How did you figure that out?" Yamamoto poured himself a large glass of milk and chugged with his good hand.

Mukuro let out his scary laugh. "While you were half dead, I went to investigate. The girl said she had a job with him at the docks, yes? The next cargo ship that's coming to harbour is this afternoon. From descriptions, it's a great, big ship with large sails and carries a variety of things that this man orders from all around the world. Most likely, our V-Metal will be on that ship."

"We have to look for that girl. She'll know which one is the right ship. Then we can just sneak around and look for the V-Metal ourselves."

Yamamoto nodded and drank the rest of the milk.

"So where are we going after this, if we're leaving?"

"We won't need to stay another night if we can get out with V-Metal this afternoon."

"Kufufufu. That is _if_ your plan works."

"WHAT? You don't believe that it'll work?"

"Of course not."

"Why you—!"

They bickered through breakfast and on the way out, with a very cheerful manager seeing them off, probably glad that he didn't have to deal with them anymore. He was _not_ a happy man when he found an arrow lodged in one of his guest rooms.

Down the street they walked, with the smell of fresh bread being baked down the street. On the other corner, pies were being sold. They had to walk off to the side because carriages pulled by horses were always coming and going.

"Tch! Damn people are too lazy to walk a few steps."

"But wait, are we going to the harbour now, or what?" Yamamoto felt clueless after being out of commission for most of yesterday.

After three more arguments and two almost-fistifights, they arrived at the harbour. Only Yamamoto's alert gaze saved them from being spotted by the girl at the train station.

She looked very different: she changed her casual shirt for a brown coat, a long sleeved linen shirt and a skirt that had many folds. Her hair was pinned up and out of the way, and her shoes were sturdy and well worn. Her gaze was sharp and focused on everything around her. On her was a brown messenger bag that was slightly bulged.

"She has knives strapped to her arms," Gokudera observed, "probably a gun or two beneath the skirt and some other stuff in the bag."

"Oya? And how would you know about the guns?"

Gokudera eye twitched. "It's common in the Mafia. Even the women are prepared for war. Look past the delicate flower and see the deadly serpent."

Now, they were sitting at an outdoor café area, looking out to the harbour, where all the ships were. They had good cover here with the tables and chairs. This place also served as the waiting area so it was filled with other people.

"Your hair will give us away," Gokudera muttered to Mukuro once the three of them sat at a table.

Mukuro gave him a gaze that promised torture later on.

A waitress came to them but quickly scurried off after meeting Gokudera's glare.

Yes, Gokudera thought. Things were different in Sicily than Namimori. Instead of girls squealing at him whenever he glared, these girls were smart and avoided him. Looking back to the waters, he saw fishing boats coming back with nets full of fish, greeted by various people. There were some ships loading cargo _in_, not _out._

Then, there was a tiny speck in the horizon.

Gokudera slammed a hand to the table. "HAH."

This jolted the sleeping Yamamoto from his nap. He reached for his sword and relaxed when he saw that it was only Gokudera.

"Gokudera, you almost gave me a heart attack."

"Well the ship's coming."

Mukuro sighed. "As always, you're wrong. Kufufufu."

"The hell?"

Gokudera took another look at the approaching vessel and scowled. It was slightly larger than your average ferry boat. "A _boat."_

"Exactly."

"But what if the things are coming in a smaller ship to disguise the value of the material?" Yamamoto asked, absentmindedly rubbing his right arm and then squinting his eyes for a better look.

Gokudera blinked in surprise at him. "That's probably the smartest thing you said on this journey." He turned to Mukuro. "So there. I'm not all wrong."

"Kufufu. We'll see."

"Ahahaha! Look, the girl also noticed the ship."

"It's a _boat,_" Mukuro and Gokudera broke their staring contest long enough to glare at the baseball fanatic.

Yamamoto scratched his head. "But…that's a ship." He pointed and they looked at the waters again. They blinked.

"A…"

"…Ship…"

Sure enough, there was a large ship also approaching, unnoticed by them.

"How the hell did that get there?" Gokudera furrowed his brows.

"Illusions," Mukuro narrowed his eyes. Gokudera stared at Mukuro.

_If even Pineapple-Head missed that illusion then…who _are_ those guys?_

"We should stay here and see what happens," Gokudera said slowly. Then he froze and forced himself to make no sudden movements as the girl scanned their area before joining the men who were going to help unload. What was she there for anyways? She didn't look like she had _any_ muscle on her.

They could see her taking out a folder with sheets of paper attached carefully. A quill was also produced for writing.

"Let's get closer."

"But Gokudera, she might see us."

Gokudera looked at Mukuro.

Mukuro in turn flowered and pretended not to see him. Then Gokudera turned back to Yamamoto.

"Since _someone_ isn't willing to help us, we're going to hope she doesn't recognise us. Now are you coming or not?"

"Yeah—let's go over there!" Yamamoto got up and quickly made his way to a small shop a few metres away. Frowning, Gokudera followed. He turned back to Mukuro to see if he really wasn't going to follow them. He could see the illusionist ordering something to snack on.

"What are you up to?" Gokudera asked when he caught up to Yamamoto.

"Look," Yamamoto said and stopped outside the shop. He pointed to a rack of hats that they saw people wearing. "And over there." Now he was pointing to a place where coats were being sold to people who were going to be traveling by water. They were made to withstand the cold and the wind.

"You want to try for a disguise?" Gokudera knitted his eyebrows together and scrunched up his nose. "You're really crazy."

"Come on, it's going to work out great!" Yamamoto grinned and went in.

* * *

><p><strong>Vongola Mansion<strong>

That morning during breakfast, Daemon was glaring at him.

G was glaring at him.

Lampo was glaring at him.

Knuckle was _slightly_ glaring at him.

Asari was…slightly unhappy... Or just plain unhappy at him.

Giotto was staring at him, wondering how to stop his Guardians from killing him.

"Now." Giotto heaved out a sigh after putting his drink down. "What are we going to do? Any suggestions?"

"Nufufu. How about we just kill him? It'll stop giving her a reason for coming."

"N-No!"

"What if …_yawn…_we make it so hateful here that she'll never come back?"

"And scare all our staff in the process? No."

"Don't let her in?"

"N—that…_could_ work…"

"G, that idea is rude. You should always welcome someone into your home when they come with good intentions."

Giotto smiled sadly at Asari. He could tell that the man was just saying that, as if he had recited those words over and over again in his head, trying to convince himself.

"Our forefathers would be disappointed in us to see that we are worrying over what will happen to our mansion after a short visit from the lady," Knuckle observed. He spoke a prayer and bowed his head.

G rolled his eyes.

"We should just tie her up and ship her off to Alaska."

"That…doesn't sound like a good idea, Daemon…" Giotto watched his Cloud Guardian carefully, wondering how he would react.

Alaude looked indifferent as if he didn't care. Then he finished eating and stared coldly at Daemon, like he always did.

"Any violence used in this house against visitors will mean torture, punishment, and arrest. Not necessarily in that order." And he stood to leave.

Giotto let out a sigh and rubbed his head. He mentally did a checklist of all the things he hid as he spoke. "We should be careful. Alaude's sister is as tricky as he is."

* * *

><p>This is <em>not<em> going to work, baseball freak."

"What? Why not?

"It's just won't!"

Gokudera glared at Yamamoto and pulled at the rim of his hat to shadow his eyes against the sun. He was wearing one of those jackets Yamamoto insisted on buying. It wasn't much of a disguise, but at least his face was covered and his clothing was slightly different than what he wore yesterday. Yamamoto was dressed similarly. When he looked up at the café, Mukuro was still bent over at the table. His shoulders were shaking, suggesting that he was laughing at their appearance. To him, it was obvious that the disguise was failing. But to Yamamoto?

"Maa, maa, Gokudera, this is perfect! Now let's go!"

Gokudera grumbled as they left the dark ally and joined the crowd heading to the harbour front. "If we get killed I'm blaming it on you."

Yamamoto gave him a cheerful laugh.

"Shut up, you're attracting attention!"

"Whoops, sorry."

As they neared the ship, they could see that the name of it was _Nuvola Velociraptor._ It was written in gold lettering. The ship looked very well kept and organised. Nothing looked out of place from what he could see.

When they hit the beach, they moved away from the crowd to the shadows of a few trees and crates nearby. They watched as ropes were thrown overboard to tie the ship down by the crew and boards slid down. They began unloading. Crates were carried out by two men each. There were at least a hundred of them with probably more on the lower level. The girl was walking around, counting and checking things off her list.

"We should look at the list," Yamamoto whispered, although there was no need to.

"Duh. We'll get it after."

"How? Do you have a plan?"

"Oh course I do! I always have a plan."

"Then what is it?"

"…Still thinking."

"Haha…" Then Yamamoto swayed slightly but steadied himself against the tree.

Gokudera frowned at him. "Oi, you alright?"

"For once you sound caring."

Gokudera scowled. "You know what Juudaime's going to say to me if I bring back a corpse instead of a laughing idiot!"

"True, true. Tsuna will probably never talk to you again."

At that, Gokudera paled considerably.

_Oops. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. Ahahah…_ He sweat-dropped. "Oh look, they're almost done."

"What?" Gokudera was snapped out of his worrying. "No way. They can't be done."

But sure enough, the cargo was all off the ship. A lot of it was already being transported by wagons to other places.

"We have to find V-Metal."

Yamamoto nodded firmly and the two began to approach the crates as one. They blended in and pretended to be helpers. As they walked around, they tried to get glimpses of the labels. Yamamoto scratched his head in confusion.

"What are these weird symbols?"

"How should I know? All I know is that it's not something I've seen before! How are we supposed to recognise it?"

"Oi! What are you two doing there?" someone demanded. They almost jumped out of their skin in surprise. Gokudera turned around to look at the caller. It was a bulky man who was sweating from the labour. He had short blond hair and a dirty white shirt with shorts.

"We're looking for the stuff that's important. That man over there said to bring the valuable ones over to that cart to be shipped off to somewhere," Gokudera said in a tone that a teenager who was bored and lazy would possess, using Adult Lambo as reference.

The man looked at them for another two seconds, probably wondering whether he should trust them or not. "I haven't seen you around here before…"

Gokudera and Yamamoto caught their breath. Gokudera opened his mouth and no words came out. For a second, he thought that they were going to get caught.

"That girl over there. She was at the train station yesterday. She told us to come and help," Yamamoto said slowly, trying to mask his foreign accent.

"Hm…" The man gave them one last look before shrugging. "Over there. The ones who have crisscrossed patterns on the lid are the ones you have to look out for. Also, that large one over there—you might need a few people to help you with it. Bring it over there." He pointed to a large wagon with a driver smoking on a pipe.

"Gottcha," Gokudera said. The man frowned and scratched his head before leaving. They heard him muttering something about _gottcha, _ and how kids were always came up with new slang words.

Yamamoto laughed. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's get moving."

"Tch! Just don't break your arm or something!"

"Ahaha! Don't worry, I'm very careful!"

The first box they lifted was pretty heavy, but that was a minor problem. Their training made them stronger and they did the job with no problems.

At the wagon, the man turned and gave them a crooked grin. _"Ye better be careful with that stuff there, lads. It's some dangerous stuff."_

"Any metals?" Gokudera questioned. The man barked out a laugh.

"I don't think so. Here, let me check." He dug into his pocket and produced a sheet of paper with neat handwriting on it.

"What's that?" Yamamoto asked. The two slowly made their way around the crates and towards the driver.

"This is a list of all the things we are stocking up on. Let's see…nope. No metals. Those were last week."

"Mind if we have a look?" Gokduera said through gritted teeth, trying to sound as polite as he could. His hard work paid off.

"I will only let you peek at this paper only because you asked nicely. Young people these days find even that hard to do." The paper was then tossed at his face and he quickly snatched it.

Gokudera scanned it as Yamamoto leaned over his shoulder. He had his finger down on the list. He turned the paper over and saw things written in an even smaller print to save paper. These were the materials and where they were being shipped. The man noticed what they were looking at.

"That stuff? It's old. Last week's."

Gokudera 's finger froze over a word: _Vanadio Metallico._ Then his finger traced over to the right, where the location of the metal now was.

He swore silently in his head. The metal was already in the Gatherer's mansion.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-LLM<strong>_

_**Edited 2015-03-29th**_


	20. Challenge Accepted

**Chapter Twenty**

"Okay, here's the plan."

"Kufufu. _What_ plan?"

"If you'd just shut up, I might explain it to you!"

"Maa, maa! Let's all calm down, ne? Besides, the sooner we get through this…" Yamamoto glanced at his arm with a worried frown. A second later though, his encouraging smile was back.

"Tch. We're going to—"

"Hold on," Mukuro frowned and looked at them. "I thought that we have to complete some sort of request? Why don't we just do that and leave?"

"That's strange, coming from you," Yamamoto rubbed his eyes. "Am I seeing right?"

"Kufufu, I am indeed saying that. Are you hinting that someone has _dared_ to pretend to be me?"

Yamamoto smiled and shook his head in nervousness.

Mukuro sighed and answered Yamamoto's question. "I'm just saying that he," a finger was pointed at Gokudera, "must have a ridiculously complicated plan thought out, when there are actual guidelines which we can follow to please both our needs."

Yamamoto began to nod his head in understanding while Gokudera tried to bury his anger, which would do him no good because it will just explode its way through later on.

"As long as we don't cause too much trouble, like barging in without permission, I'm game!" Yamamoto stood up with a jump.

"The sooner the better!" Gokudera glared at Mukuro. "I don't want to face this guy for another minute more than necessary."

"Then let's go after we huddle!" Yamamoto stretched out his good hand with a wide grin on his face.

Gokudera looked at him in disbelief. "You're still doing that? There's no way I'll do it—it's so childish."

"Kufufu. I'd rather not touch you when you have that poison in you," Mukuro chuckled, albeit a bit nervously.

"Oh, come _on!_" Yamamoto snagged Mukuro's arm and put it over his, and then grabbed Gokudera's before anyone could say otherwise.

Gokudera growled. "Fine! Whatever! I'm only doing this for Juudaime!"

"_VONGOLA!"_

_"FIGHT!"_

* * *

><p>It was near dusk when they left their rooms to travel up to the mansion where their Gatherer was staying in.<p>

"So…who's going to do the talking?" Yamamoto asked. "We also have to cover up that we're from the future, right?"

"Kufufu. Of course, _I_ will be doing the talking."

"_Oooh_, no you don't. I'm doing it!"

"Maa, maa…" A drop of precipitation rolled down Yamamoto's head as he tried to calm his friends.

In the end, they decided to let Gokudera talk, since Mukuro didn't feel like being their speaker anymore.

"Fourth house," Yamamoto murmured.

"Here," Mukuro pointed a finger.

The mansion was white and decorated with vines all over the walls even though it still looked new. There were three trees in the front lawn and plants growing everywhere. Despite them being all over the place, it wasn't a mess. It seemed like they were organised so that each plant had a purpose.

Then they saw the cages.

Gokudera stumbled back from the entrance in surprise.

"What the—?"

"_AAARRROOOOOFFF!"_

"W-Wow…nice, doggie…" Yamamoto was half bent, trying to sooth the dogs that were yanking at the chains which held them.

"Why are there dogs here? What if they're guard dogs hired to spy on us, and to—!"

"Kufufu."

"Gokudera, I think you're over reacting! They're just dogs, after all." Yamamoto laughed as he stood again. The dogs continued to bark like mad, but Yamamoto believed that they were calm. "Okay, they're fine now."

"Uh…"

"I'm serious! Ahaha!"

_I don't think you're right,_ Mukuro and Gokudera both sweat-dropped.

"Either way, we still need to go," Mukuro said and cocked an eyebrow at Gokudera. "Unless you're afraid of…?"

"Shut up!" Gokudera's face was burning with anger. "Of course we're going! And you better watch your mouth here!"

Mukuro came to a sudden halt and gave Gokudera an icy look. He said, "Oya? Are you trying to order me around?"

"He didn't mean it," Yamamoto said. "Let's go!" He carefully pressed Mukuro onwards. To his surprise, the illusionist moved.

Gokudera rapped against the door three times. They heard the echo, as if the entire place was empty. They traded looks with each other.

"Try again?" Yamamoto suggested in a quiet voice.

Gokudera snorted and did so. This time, they backed away slightly when they heard footsteps approaching the door. The double wooden doors opened to reveal a brightly lit corridor with the floors covered in red velvet. The walls were painted a dark colour, not matching with the sunlight coming through the windows of the rooms they could see.

"Yes?" the man said without emotion.

Three heads snapped back to the butler after observing the room. "_We need to see your master,"_ Gokudera said simply.

The butler merely stared at them for a second before he shut the door.

"What! Hey!" Gokudera threw his body weight on the door. Yamamoto and Mukuro laughed, although Yamamoto was trying to hide his.

"Kufufufufufu! You got shut out by a _butler_…kufufu!"

"Shut up!"

"Kufufufu…"

"Let's see _you_ try to go in!"

"Alright," Mukuro agreed easily. Yamamoto raised both eyebrows and stopped laughing.

"Hold on… you're serious? I thought you were joking! You saw what happened to Gokudera!"

"What of it? He's not me. Kufufu…watch the master."

He knocked. The door opened. "Let me in," he demanded of the same butler.

The butler said, "Children should play elsewhere," and began to close the doors.

Mukuro's eye twitched and without moving, casted an illusion into the air, directed at the butler.

Nothing happened.

Gokudera sighed and rolled his eyes. He looked first at the butler, then at Mukuro. "What are you doing?"

"Be quiet," Mukuro said through gritted teeth._ Why is this butler still standing? He should be unconscious, if not crazy._

"If you would excuse me," the stiff butler said. He didn't even blink as he shut the door. This time, it was Gokudera who laughed at Mukuro's ridiculous look.

"Ooooh, my stomach! Ahahaha!"

Mukuro's attempt to control his anger failed. It flared outwards, silencing Gokudera.

"I will get in no matter what…kufufufufufufu…" his laugh seemed to be on a whole different scale than it was before. Now that he found it challenging, his laugh was plain horrifying. Mukuro slammed his trident to the ground and an unknown force destroyed the double doors.

Debris flew everywhere, making Yamamoto and Gokudera to take cover. Mukuro was in the middle of the mess, controlling the winds and looking determined to go in with style.

"_**Who dares enter without permission?"**_ A very deep and foreboding voice echoed from all directions. Gokudera and Yamamoto took the risk of raising their heads to see where the voice might be coming from.

"Are you the Gatherer?" Mukuro demanded and took a step into the house. He noticed that the butler was now standing a safe distance away from the door, and to his disappointment, unscathed.

"_**Who are you?"**_

Mukuro continued to walk and look around. Gokudera and Yamamoto traded a look and shrugged. They may as well go in. _That Pineapple Head better not do anything stupid…_

"I am Mukuro Rokudo," he replied with a hint of pride in his voice. There was a pause. Mukuro frowned slightly and continued. "I'm here for Vanadio Metal."

There was still no booming voice.

"Hey…are you doing something wrong?" Gokudera asked hesitantly when the pause ran on for too long.

"Kufufu…there is nothing I said that was wrong. My name is Mukuro and we're here for the metal. Nothing's wrong with that."

"Maybe it's because you said what we wanted," Yamamoto rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Mukuro narrowed his eyes. "Oya…how else do we get our point across? Dancing?"

Yamamoto brightened. "That might work!"

Gokudera was very tempted to hit his head.

"The master will see you now," the butler said.

Gokudera's head snapped to his direction. _So he knew Japanese all along…sneaky butler._

"Sure!" Yamamoto started forwards but Gokudera held him back.

"Che! What's with this master of yours anyways? He just demands who we are and leaves us hanging! He should have come answer the door himself! We're in the—"

"Oi, Gokudera! There's no need to get so hyped up!" Yamamoto interrupted just in time before he could say 'the Vongola Family'. _I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing if they know that we're in the Vongola…_

"Kufufu. Yes, your master will have to come down here himself. We don't trust him," Mukuro put in bluntly. "Not after he tried to kill us."

"Very well," the butler said to their surprise. To be honest, Mukuro didn't expect them to go along with his demand. "I will go to the master and tell him of your request." The butler turned around and walked up a flight of steps built into the wall.

"Hey! Was that there before?"

"The hell…no way…is it another illusion?"

"Kufufu…don't look at me."

"Tch! Some illusionist you are."

"Oya, oya, don't put all the blame on me. The illusions in this house are masked with Cloud flames…and you know how pissed off I am by those users."

"So it breaks your concentration. Well, that's good!"

"_What?"_

"You baseball nut…what are you trying to do?"

"I'm trying to lighten up the mood! This means that there's still room for practice, ne?"

"O-ho. We have a crowd today. That doesn't happen every day."

Heads snapped towards the voice, alert.

_Why didn't I sense him?_ They all thought.

Leaning on a doorway was a tall man with dark blond and green hair tied back. The only difference between his appearance and the description given to them by the girl was that his hair had no green streaks, though it was just as long as Kikyo's.

_No, _Gokudera corrected, _the roots of his hair are green. So his natural colour is green, even if the rest of his hair is blond. Tch. God, I really hate this. I can't believe we're actually meeting people they're related to hundreds of years ago in Sicily._

'They,' referring to the Millefiore Guardians.

The man was wearing a long white shirt and dark pants with a brown belt attached to the hip. Despite the simplicity of his wear, it suited his high status.

"I am Jay. What is it?"

Gokudera spoke up. "We've come from Talbot and we need V-Metal."

"O-ho? Talbot? V-Metal? Perhaps you are referring to _Vanadio._"

"Tch…You know we are," he said through gritted teeth.

Jay's eyes narrowed at the impoliteness coming from this child's mouth. "I know Talbot. V-Metal comes with a high price. Are you willing to accept?"

"Of course we are!"

"We are."

"Kufufu. A challenge? Count me in."

A smile crept up on Jay's face.

"Then follow me."

* * *

><p><strong>-LLM<strong>

_**Edited 2015-06-09th**_


	21. Find that Diadem!

**Chapter 21**

"Right," Jay sat at his desk while his three guests stood in front of him. To his right was the illusionist. To the left was a grinning boy holding a bamboo sword. In the middle was the hot headed one. As he studied them, he considered what he should make them do. _I can give them something foolish or…are they up to it…mm…_

"How good are you in tactics and combat?"

"We're _very _good!"

"Oh-ho. Okay then." Jay pulled out a drawer and shifted through the papers until he found what he wished for. "Here." He slid a grey scale photograph in front of them. They stepped forwards to get a better look at it.

The photograph was of an artifact.

"Haha! What's that? It looks pretty."

"This is a priceless artifact that is being kept under strict security by a rich art collector."

"Who?" Gokudera asked. Jay looked at them closely.

"A bunch of brats like you won't know him. Moving on," he said when Gokudera started to protest, "He hired mafia members to guard it while he stays in Italy. He is definitely the biggest idiot ever. Are they really going to guard it instead of steal it? Anyways, they are strong fighters and the mansion is infested with them.

"They also have traps set out all over the premises for intruders who dare to attempt a theft. To add to the Mafiosi he hired, there are also other guards who are heavily armed with guns and other weapons. In total, there are about two hundred men working shifts, guarding this."

"Kufufu. That doesn't sound challenging at all. I'll be taking my leave now."

"Oh, I forgot to mention something that might make you reconsider, although I don't really care who finishes the job for me: they use the seven Dying Will flames of the Sky." Mukuro paused. "Apparently, they are very good at controlling them."

"Oya…this is interesting…" _People from the past, other than the Vongola and Shimon, know how to use the flames? Kufufufu…_

Gokudera cleared his throat annoyingly, trying to get Jay's attention. "And you want us to…" Gokudera pointed to the picture with a finger. "Steal it?"

"Exactly."

"Tch! Why don't you steal it yourself?"

"Because, I am a busy man. I would actually go myself, but I have other things to do that are more important."

_There is something that's more important than a priceless artifact? What is he thinking?_

Jay noticed their glance. "Oh-ho? I know what you're thinking. True, I respect this as a priceless artifact, but not for its looks. I want what is in it."

"What…is in it…?" Yamamoto repeated.

Jay nodded innocently. "Oh-ho, I'll even make it easier for you. I drew up a blueprint of the property—all four floors, secret passageways, underground sewer tunnels, the yard, stats, and a lot of other things that I don't care to explain about." His face turned dark, and menacing. "You have one day to complete the task. Bring the artifact back into this room by midnight, otherwise the deal's off. It's also off if it's harmed in any way, or if you get blood on it. I don't care if you had to drag a dying friend out of the building or not—you must be here by midnight with this. If you are even a minute late, I might consider…no…I _will_ kill you. Did I make myself clear? Good."

"Hold it," Yamamoto interrupted. "Before we do anything: hand over the antidote."

"What antidote?"

Yamamoto rolled up his sleeve to show his hand which was covered with bandages. The poison that was now spreading above his elbow was also bandaged tightly with the ointment applied onto it.

"Ah, that. Yes, you were not supposed to be wandering around here, looking for things you weren't supposed to. So, I sent that as a warning. But then I caught wind of the art collector, so I decided to see if you were up to the challenge so I did not kill you when I found out that you were still in town. Instead, I allowed you to find my mansion and to enter. Sadly, that poison on the arrow did not belong to me. It must have gotten mixed up with the other arrows in my weaponry and my men used it by accident. I wish you luck that you will not die and will find the antidote soon. And remember to bring back my artifact by tonight."

With a mighty push of purple flame clouds, they were forced out the mansion through the quickest way—the third floor window.

"Aaaaahh!"

Their audience with the Cloud Gatherer was over.

"How _dare_ he threaten us—"

"Oya, oya…where do you think _you're_ going? I'm killing him first."

"Outta my way!"

"Maa, maa!" Yamamoto put himself between the two and the mansion. "Think Tsuna, Gokudera—Tsuna." He relaxed when Gokudera calmed down considerably at the mention of his boss and why he was there in the first place. But he himself wondered what their dear friend would think if they were told to steal something.

_He wouldn't like it at all,_ Yamamoto thought with a grim expression. _But we have to do this to travel back to the future. I'll have to put aside my conscious for a while longer. _He glanced at Mukuro, who still looked too interested in a fight with Gokudera.

"Ne, Mukuro," Yamamoto started seriously. The illusionist stopped at the sound of the serious tone coming from the care-free baseball nut. "The guy thinks we can't do this without being killed."

"Kufufu…us? There is no _us._ He thinks that _I_ cannot do it. Now get out of the way." He maked a move to go around Yamamoto but again, Yamamoto blocks his path.

"That makes double the reason to complete the task, doesn't it? Going back in there to argue will just show that you're not up to it…hang on…_are_ you up to it?" Yamamoto cocked his head and looked confused.

Mukuro growled. "Be careful with what you say in front of me, Yamamoto Takeshi…I am certainly able to finish this, with, or without the two of you."

"Then let's go."

"Fine."

Behind Mukuro's back, Yamamoto wiped the sweat from his forehead and gave Gokudera a crooked grin. Gokudera in return started at him with a disbelieving look saying, "Did I see you just convince him to go along with the trade?"

Yamamoto gave him a wide grin and followed Mukuro off the property.

* * *

><p><em>Giotto's Problems II<em> will now continue…

"Where's G?" Giotto asked Lampo. They were lounging on the couches in the tea room they reserved for close friends who weren't there for Mafia business.

His only Guardian waiting with him was Lampo—the rest managed to escape Giotto's orders by not being there to hear them.

"The last time I saw him was on the roof. He was pacing back and forth, as if considering suicide, and then decided to climb down to the seventh floor from the edge."

"_What?_ Then why didn't you stop him?"

"I knew that he won't kill himself over this. He still needs to protect you—oh, please don't give me that look. I didn't do anything wrong."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

"Master Giotto, Lampo, Miss Julia is here—"

"Oh, come now, Riko!" An airy voice sang from behind the maid.

In came twenty-three year old Jules, Alaude's sister. She was wearing a green dress, the latest in the fashion line, the most popular slippers among the court ladies, and her hair was pulled up in the latest style. Her face was beautiful because of the _absence_ of cosmetics rather than its presence. She always told them that make up would be the death of the ladies. Putting all that strange powder on their faces could never be good. She had long eyelashes, grey eyes, and full, red lips. The few strands of hair that was purposely left loose from the bun, framed her high cheekbones and elegant neck. She wore a pair of raindrop-shaped diamond earrings that shimmered when she moved, as if the raindrops were indeed falling.

Her figure was lean and tall, like Alaude. She also had his way of gracefully walking and being able to attack at a moment's notice. Lampo shivered as he remembered the first time they were getting ready to meet her. It didn't go well for the enemy who tried to attack that night. He did his best to not think about it.

"How many times have I told you to call me Jules, Riko?"

"Many times, Miss," Riko said politely. _Please let me leave…_ Being a part of Vongola's staff for more than four years meant that she knew exactly who this woman was as well as her personality.

Giotto gave her an apologetic look. "Could you bring in the tea and snacks please?"

Riko nodded and darted off.

Giotto and Lampo stood to greet her with a brush of his lips on her gloved hand.

"Giotto! Lampo! It's great to see the two of you again."

"Yes, we're happy to see that you are well," Giotto smiled. Lampo pulled a chair back for her to sit.

"Oh, _thank you_, Lampo. Always the gentleman. How is my dear brother?"

Giotto and Lampo resumed their own seats.

"He's fine, although he is being kept busy, which is the reason why he couldn't send you any letters. I'm afraid that I'm to blame for that."

Jules laughed and waved a hand at the Vongola boss. "Nonsense, Giotto."

Riko came back with the tea and set it on the table. She quickly poured them into delicate china tea cups and set the late snacks on the table for them to serve themselves. Giotto gave her a quick smile and she nodded in return. Before Jules could have her to do anything else, she left.

"Oh, what's the hurry?" Jules put a finger to her lips. "I was just about to ask her to bring me a fan. It's quite hot here."

Giotto and Lampo exchanged looks.

"It's fine in here, Jules. You're just still excited from your ride here to see Alaude," Lampo said hurriedly. "There's no need for a fan."

"I suppose so."

"Did you encounter any problems on your way here?"

Jules took a sip of her tea as she pondered over Giotto's question. "Not really. A young man stopped us as we neared town and wanted me to give him my money. Obviously, I said no. Other than that, there were no problems."

Giotto nodded slowly. He caught Lampo looking at him, unusually anxious.

_Who wouldn't be?_ Giotto reflected. If they ran out of things to talk about, Jules was going to want to look for the other Guardians. Especially…

"Oh, by the way, Giotto, where is G?"

Giotto and Lampo forced themselves to not go pale as they heard the dreaded question leave her mouth.

_Giotto's Problems II _will be back soon!

* * *

><p>"What exactly is that called, Gokudera?" Yamamoto asked.<p>

"What thing?"

"The artifact we're supposed to—mmphh!"

"Shut up!"

"Ahaha, sorry. I mean the artifact. What is it called anyways?"

"Tch. It's Caroline. The thing is called Caroline."

"Kufufu. Who would give a diadem a name?"

The three of them were passing the busy streets that were getting ready for the night time market.

"How the hell should I know? All I know is that we have to get it out of there in four hours!"

"Maa, maa, there's no need to get all stressed out about it."

"_WHO SAYS I'M STRESSED!?"_

"Kufufu. Whatever. Where's the map?" Mukuro demanded. "Hand it over."

_I'm getting a sense of déjà vu…_ Gokudera narrowed his eyes. Then a spark lit his eyes as he glared. _Right…I remember now… _"The last time you had a map in your hands, you tore it up. There is no way in hell am I going to let you touch another map."

"Oh, just give it to me," Yamamoto sighed and snatched it out of Gokudera's unsuspecting hand.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Haha! Well, the two of you both had a chance to hold onto something important, right?" Yamamoto said innocently. "So it should be my turn to do so. Besides, the two of you would most likely destroy it."

_Irk..._The two dubbed as destroyers sweat-dropped at the truth of this.

"Let's move on!" Yamamoto said cheerfully and raised a hand and pointed to one direction. Grumbling, Gokudera and Mukuro followed him down a street, across a park, past a busy intersection, through the woods, and finally, stopping behind a post office.

"According to the map, that's the building we're looking for." Yamamoto paused. "But it looks more like a castle."

"Kufufu. I can't wait to see the look on their faces when I steal the diadem."

"We have to do this quick. The damn Gatherer didn't tell us where in the castle it was located in so we're going to have to search—"

"—Or ask for directions!"

Gokudera glared at Yamamoto. "The least we'll do is to threaten them to tell us! You idiot… ask for directions…yeesh! You'd think that you grew up in a little innocent town!" Mukuro chuckled but made no comment.

"Oh, I have an idea!" Yamamoto brought out his necklace which held his two box weapons. If he didn't transform it into Cambio Forma, he still had the option of bringing them out as animals, which is what he did now.

"Hey Jirou, we need some help from you right now!" Immediately, Yamamoto's dog, Jirou, appeared before them and gave his partner a happy woof.

"Nice idea to bring out a dog," Gokudera started, "except that he doesn't have the scent!"

Jirou turned to Gokudera and barked loudly.

"Maa, maa, Gokudera. Jirou can help us look around, and he won't make any noises, so he's perfect for the job! Kojirou can fly back to us to tell us if Jirou found something."

After five precious minutes of arguing with Yamamoto, Gokudera reluctantly agreed to have the dog and the swallow along in their party.

"Great! Let's go. Jirou and I will search the second floor. Gokudera, you can search the second floor and Mukuro—oh. He's gone," he laughed and scratched his head. "I guess he will be searching wherever he wants."

"Tch! Don't forget to search the towers and watch out for guards!"

"Okay. Do you want the map?"

Gokudera sniffed at his and stuck his nose up. "You can keep the grubby thing. I already have it memorised."

"Amazing!"

"Get going!"

* * *

><p>They observed the entrance to the castle and saw that the guards were drowsy, since it was the end of their shift. They were practically asleep on their feet, from the looks of it.<p>

"We have to sneak pass them and use the servants' door."

Yamamoto nodded and the two faced into the grounds. They were lucky that they were in the past and there were no digital cameras in this era—or automatic machine guns. Otherwise, they would have been turned into confetti ten times over from the moment they slipped pass the gates and across the neatly trimmed yard.

"Huh?" One of the guards started. He looked into the darkness in front of them and has his gun firmly in his hands.

His partner snorted and jumped a bit. "What happened?"

"I don't know. I thought I heard something go by."

"Hnnn…It was probably just a cat. Where the hell is our shift? We've been here for hours!"

* * *

><p>Inside, they separated to search their floors and began to look for the diadem. They knew that it would most likely be in the heart of the castle, where security would be the tightest. Yamamoto was walking briskly down a brightly lit hall, anxious to get under some cover.<p>

He was surprised that he didn't pass by any servants yet, but enticing aromas made their way to his nose. _Mm! Smells like dinner…so, the servants are preparing for it now. I suppose that's lucky, now that I won't be seen by any of them. _He walked up a set of stairs and went through an archway into the more luxurious parts of the castle.

He stopped at the next corner and looked down at Jirou. Seeing that he was prepared, he carefully listened for any footsteps coming down the corridor. Hearing none, Yamamoto proceeded to his right and slowed when he came to a door.

_I wonder what these rooms are for._ He checked the blueprints, which showed the room as one of the guard's sleeping quarters. He shook his head. _It's definitely not there._

Jirou pawed at Yamamoto.

"Hm? Oh, you want to go look in that direction?" He pointed to the other fork of where they stopped at just before.

"Woof!"

"Okay, go ahead. Be careful and make sure to always check corners, okay?"

Kojirou flew around Yamamoto's head and pecked his finger affectionately as the two animals went off for their own search. Yamamoto continued on, following the map. He slowly made his way to the middle of the floor.

_What was that?_ He froze as he heard conversation coming towards him. Feeling anxious, he looked around him. To his left, Yamamoto saw large brown doors leading to a big room and to his right was a brick wall. He glanced at the map quickly to find the room to see where it led. It wouldn't be good if he walked into someone's bedroom only to find it occupied by someone ready to fight back.

_Hey~ It's a show room! Maybe it's in here? But then why aren't there guards?_

He soon found his answer by paying attention to the conversation he was hearing.

"Hurry up. We were only supposed to go out for drinks for a few minutes and we ended up staying with those off duty guys for half an hour. I hope the boss didn't check on the treasure yet."

_Lucky! _Yamamoto cheered himself on and tried the handle and found that it was firmly locked. He scratched his head and wondered what to do. He couldn't just break in, right?

"I know that, Fab, which is why we should hurry up. But besides, no one will be stupid enough to break in and find the room anyways."

Yamamoto grinned. He looked down the other side of the hall and saw that it was still clear. Maybe he could sneak up on them…no, it was too far. It would give them too much time to get their weapons ready.

As sudden as Reborn kicking Tsuna, Yamamoto had a brilliant idea. He lay down, flat on the ground with his limbs sprawled out and his face slack. When the two guards came rounding the corner, they had the expected reactions of two people in shock.

"Oh my god! Who is that? How'd he get here?" A panicked voice cried out. Yamamoto heard a gun being cocked and footsteps slowly approaching. With his eyes closed, there was no way to tell what they were doing but he had a very good notion that they were aiming guns at him.

"He's just a kid, Noro. How did he make his way in the castle?"

"Who cares about that—how did he end up like this?"

Yamamoto heard a thump.

"Ow!"

"What do you mean, 'Who cares'! It's more important to find out how he got in here!"

"Well then ask him! Wake him up!"

The one named Fabio sighed. "I was about to do that."

Yamamoto suddenly felt threatened and snapped his eyes open and had his sword transformed in his left hand before he was fully off the ground. He sliced the gun's barrel clean off as if it was made out of anything but steel.

Noro stared at him with a combination of anger, fear, shock, and the plain, what-the heck-is-going-on? expression.

"Sorry," he apologised before knocking him and Fabio unconscious with the hilt of his katana and laying them gently on the floor. He knelt beside them and pondered over what to do for a few seconds. Then he nodded to himself. Yamamoto rummaged around Fabio's shirt and found a ring of keys.

_I wonder which on is the right one. This one?_ He tried it. No. _What about this one?_ No. The third one was also the wrong one. It was on the fifth try that he finally succeeded in opening the door. One look inside confirmed that it was the room.

He pulled out a dog whistle and gave it a long blow. Then he put it away.

Shigure Kintoki was put back into its cloth before he pulled the two guards into the room and propped them up against the wall.

Yamamoto closed the doors quickly and quietly after locking them. Then he turned around to get a good look at the room.

It was lit with five torches, all spread out evenly throughout the circular room. The walls were smooth and painted over with a dark colour. He could see that there used to be paintings hanging on the wall and other arts displayed on their own small tables; but they were all removed, all for the purpose of the lone object in the middle—the diadem.

As if in a trance, Yamamoto approached the beautiful artifact. His footsteps echoed in the room as he walked. "It does look pretty priceless," he murmured to himself as he reached out to touch it. Something made him pause. Was it the flickering of the torch light bouncing off the diadem, which made strange shadows that caused him to hesitate? He took a cautious step back from it and looked around. What if it was booby trapped?

He decided to wait for Mukuro, if he were going to come. Meanwhile, he examined the room for anything that seemed out of place. He walked up to each torch holder and examined them to see if there were any hidden darts. After making a whole round of the room, he crouched next to the guards and stripped them of his weapons. Suddenly his vision went dark and came back a second later. He shook his head.

"Phew! They need better ventilation here…baka," he scolded himself. "I should have done this first." Now, he stared at the weapons. Two black guns and magazines lay on the ground before him, as well as boot knives and a few daggers. He looked at their hands and found no rings that would show that they were flame users.

"Hm…that's not right… He said that they had people who knew how to use flames in the castle, so it should be harder…why are guards who are guarding this room not flame users?"

Yamamoto's eyes narrowed as he shot up and took five big steps to stand before the diadem again. He stared at it, sweating. After scrutinising it for another minute, he decided that he had nothing to lose if he simply touched it.

Readying himself to leap back if need be he placed two fingers on the rim. When nothing happened, he relaxed and ran his finger over the edge to find it smooth and cool to the touch. It was indeed steel. He ran his fingers over the sparkling diamonds and jewels that were pressed into the diadem.

"Hm?" He looked at the metal again. Being a swordsman and the son of a sushi chef who was strict with good blades, thought there was something funny about it. He lifted the diadem. Surprisingly, it was heavy.

_That's probably because of the jewels,_ Yamamoto thought dismissively and tilted the suspicious object. He placed a nail on it and…made a scratch that removed a thin layer of coating.

_Click._

His eyes widened as he realised, too late, that this was a trap.

_**BOOM!**_

* * *

><p>Mukuro stopped where he was and listened. Just now, he heard an explosion. <em>Sounds like someone walked into a trap,<em> he mused as he continued up the staircase to the next level. Because he was invisible, he didn't care if there was anyone in the same corridor as him. In fact, he might be able to scare them into believing that there was a ghost...

He had already searched the third floor thoroughly and beaten everyone he could find to the point where they wouldn't recognise themselves. Now on the fourth floor, he could feel that it was different. The floor had a plush, blue carpet and fancy walls. It was obviously personalised to suit the art collector who lived in the castle at the moment. He could see paintings on the walls and recognised a few from the Early Renaissance period. Others were…

"Oya…I think I see a few replicas…Kufufu…" He walked up to a painting and examined it. "Kufufu…yes, definitely a fake. I wonder…where is this art collector…such an idiot to be buying these fakes. Where is the real one?" He tapped the frame of the painting and absentmindedly put a nail beneath the paper which was supposedly the canvas. He peeled it off slowly and chucked as he found the real thing. He released it and the fake painting fell back into place.

_Now, why is the real one hidden behind the fake one? What is the point of doing that? Perhaps that will be one question I will ask Mr. Art Collector once I find him. Kufufu…_

He continued down the corridor and raised an eyebrow at the double doors at the end. "Could it be any more obvious?" He muttered, because there were guards placed at the door, who were alert and ready to fight anything that approached them. Only, they couldn't see this adversary so they were practically useless. Mukuro lazily put them into a deep sleep and unlocked the doors. As he stepped in, the two guards on the floor groans and began to get up.

"Oya, oya…that is not supposed to happen," Mukuro frowned and observed them shake off his mystical sleep as if it was nothing. He glanced behind him and saw the diadem and turned back to the guards. He materialized to they could see him, just to see their reaction.

They were not surprised in the least. They charged at him with their weapons. The shorter one had a long staff covered with Storm flames. The taller and chubbier one held two guns with lightning flames flickering off it.

"Kufufufu. This will be fun." He summoned his trident and used it to fend off the staff. The trident slid gracefully off the staff and the pointed end flew at the second guard.

The guard let out a cry of alarm and brought up a gun to block the trident. Mukuro pulled back his weapon and allowed his poisonous snakes to drop onto the guard as he dealt with the one wielding a staff. He blocked and swiped at the man's feet but his opponent was stronger than that; he leapt into the air and swung the staff at Mukuro's head. His trident was back up in an instant and the two weapons clashed. Red sparks flickered and grew in size. Mukuro's smile grew wider as the man holding the staff looked alarmingly at the weapon, at himself, then at the intruder.

"Kufufufu."

The man became more worried when Mukuro laughed. To anyone who wasn't used to it, the laugh would be seen as hell itself.

The flames continued to grow until it covered the man's hands and was right about to come into contact with Mukuro's face. "Mm…this seems enough," he murmured and smirked at the man.

Every bit of red flames that were ever part of the staff was suddenly gone as though being sucked in by something…namely…the trident.

"What! How! What happened to my flames! Give them back!" The man roared when he hit the ground on his feet. He pointed the staff at Mukuro now, although he was backing away. He stopped after two steps, remembering his duties.

Mukuro chuckled. "Kufufu…I'd be the biggest idiot in the seven hells if I tell you my secrets. All I would say is that it is a clever thing I found from Sawada Tsunayoshi."

Just a few years ago, Mukuro had mastered the art of forcing his opponent to release their flames uncontrollably and once he is satisfied that there is enough, he can make his trident steal the flames and make them his own, with interesting special abilities grown from the original flame type.

His own trident lit up in a hazy red and indigo flame as he charged at the two men. He spun the trident as the one with the guns tried to aim at him. The bullets ricocheted off the spinning trident and hit the guards instead.

They howled in pain as the metal bullets pierced clean through their skin. Mukuro sighed. They were defeated without him actually doing anything. He picked up the staff and the pair of guns. He examined the staff and saw that both weapons were made purposely for a Dying Will user. "These might be useful in the future." Then he thought of what he should do with them. He smirked again at the thought.

"I wonder how he will react when these appear over his head in the middle of dinner." With that, the weapons disappeared to be transported by his abilities to the location he wished it to be sent to.

* * *

><p>Gokudera sniffed the air of the pitch dark room he just opened the door to.<p>

"It's just a wine cellar," he grumbled and shut the door. He turned and his heart skipped a beat.

"What the hell?" He was looking down the hall to see that Kojirou and Jirou were trotting towards him, but the dog froze in the middle of lifting one of his legs. The scene would have brought on more humour, if the situation at the moment wasn't so tense. He cocked an eyebrow. He began to walk towards them but they darted off back to the way they came from. Gokudera narrowed his eyes in confusion and scrunched up his nose.

"What are they playing at?" Seconds later, the swallow came back and perched on Gokudera's right shoulder. He was about to brush the bird off but hesitated. So far, he's had bad luck with small animals (Uri is the only small animal he came close to) and he wasn't about to risk having his finger bitten off.

"Che…What do you want?"

Kojirou peeped loudly into Gokudera's ear and flew off to fly around Gokudera's head.

"You—!" Gokudera glared at the bird hatefully and clutched his ear in pain. He ignored the swallow and continued to look for the artifact.

He picked a lock on a door that was plainly fashioned—very different from the rest of the doors he opened. He heard the click and it swung inwards. It was as dark as the previous one, but he saw a table with candles beside the door. He took out a lighter and lit a few of the candles.

The interior of the room was quite plain. It was windowless. There were couches and tables made out of old oak trees in the middle. To the sides were smaller tables with less elegant chairs. On the walls were numerous paintings that he couldn't recognise. He stepped in and closed the door. Something about that table in the middle and the table he was standing beside didn't match.

One was covered inch thick with dust while the other was clean and polished. The oak table was the ancient one. In the centre of it lay a piece of parchment that was old and tearing. He walked towards it.

It was then that he heard an explosion that rocked him on his feet violently. He looked up at the ceiling nervously. The sound came right above him. From what he knew of explosions, it was possible that the ceiling might collapse because of it. He hurried to get out of the room.

_CRACK!_

The ceiling split apart and came down to him.

"Crap!" He looked at the door and at the table. He would be buried alive by the time he reached the door. He decided to go chance it with the table. He dived under it and waited for the falling of stones to stop. Bricks fell to either side of him and he heard more thumps hit the table. He carefully lay his hands on the table in an attempt to stop it from falling on him.

Kojirou was somewhere. He could hear the stupid bird.

"Get out of here!" He called in vain. "Find Yamamoto—_cough cough. _Oh hell."

He felt the table giving way.

"C-" he coughed violently from the dust as the ceiling continued to fall. More heavy objects were being dropped on the table and the surrounding area. "C-Ca—_cough!_ Cam-CAMBIO FORMA!"

The table collapsed and his eyes snapped shut, waiting for the worse.

* * *

><p>Mukuro eyed the diadem carefully and looked at his surroundings. He used his trident to tap the diadem. Then he used it to lift it off its nice red pillow. The diadem slid down the trident until he had it in his hand. He looked at it with his eyes, as if daring it to show its true colours. He could see that this was no illusion and that there weren't any booby traps laid out in the room.<p>

_Maybe it's because a diversion was already placed someplace else…_ Mukuro frowned slightly. So that explosion just now was probably from a room with a fake diadem.

"Either way, I will be leaving now."

Jirou barked madly at him. Despite himself, Mukuro jumped in surprise and turned around. Yamamoto's dog was standing on the two bleeding men, snarling at Mukuro.

"What do you want?"

Jirou barked again. He approached Mukuro and snagged his sleeve.

"Let go if you know what's best for you, mutt."

A deep growl came from Jirou. He began backing away with Mukuro's sleeve still in his mouth. Careful to not let the dog tear it, Mukuro followed.

"Oya? You want me to follow you to your master? Kufufu. I'm afraid I will not be helping you there. Goodbye."

Mukuro made an attempt to disappear but Jirou then bit into the sleeve and blood seeped through the fabric. Mukuro glared at the dog.

"Dog…do you know what you are biting? Let go. _Now."_

Jirou did the total opposite: he pulled harder and Mukuro winced. He raised his trident to hit the dog, but Jirou dodged the blow.

Mukuro let out a growl of his own. Oh, if only people can see him now. Stopped by a dog he couldn't even land a blow on.

"Fine! I'll follow! Just let go, you damn dog!"

Mukuro made his trident disappear and he rolled up his sleeves as he stomped after the dog.

When they reached the second floor landing, Mukuro saw that a set of doors were flung off their hinges and the wall beside it was blackened. He heard the screaming of servants, the shouting from the guards, and the alarm bell being rung. He ran to the door and looked in. At first, he thought it wasn't possible, but he saw that there wasn't a floor to the room. There was possibly only a metre of if left on the sides, with a large crater created in the middle. He peered into it and saw nothing because of the darkness. He pulled off a few torches from the walls and relit them and had them floating into the hole. Now, he saw rubble. There was nothing else, but it was obvious that the baseball player probably fell in there. Jirou barked and jumped into the hole. Hearing voices behind him, Mukuro decided that he might as well follow.

He landed on a large slab of rock and looked around. It was another room that might have looked beautiful before the explosion but it was hard to tell in the darkness. Instead, he looked around and saw the dog digging fiercely by a pile. Mukuro walked towards them. He saw Yamamoto's left hand sticking out, still holding onto his katana with an iron grip. With a sigh, Mukuro clasped his hand around Yamamoto's wrist and with a grunt, pulled Yamamoto out from beneath the rubble.

Yamamoto groaned and coughed. Then he opened his eyes and surveyed his surroundings. He felt the hand on his wrist and made a desperate attempt to attack.

"Oh you idiot, it's me!" Mukuro let go of the arm in disgust.

"Mukuro?" Yamamoto blinked and rubbed his eyes and looked again. He grinned and said, "Oh, it is you. Hey, Jirou! Thanks for finding me!"

"_Peep!"_ They turned to see Kojirou flying towards them.

"Kjirou! You're here too! Did you happen to find Gokudera?" Kojirou peeped again. Yamamoto laughed.

Mukuro watched him in dismay. "Oya…how is it that you survived? You should be dead."

"Ah, that's harsh…I don't know. I guess I got lucky?" Yamamoto stopped grinning and cupped the swallow in his hands, despite his right one hurting as if on fire on second and plunged into cold water the next.

He stared at the swallow's beak intently and rubbed something off.

"Oi, Mukuro…this is blood."

Mukuro shrugged. "So?"

"That means someone else is here with us—hey, did you see two guards in the room on your way down?"

"Yeah. They were cowering in a corner, afraid of moving."

"Maybe we should help them…"

"Kufufufu…no way I'm helping them. I got the real diadem. I'm leaving."

"Where's Gokudera?"

Kojirou peeped and flew to a large pile of rocks. Yamamoto groaned. "Don't tell me he got caught in the explosion…" He grunted as he stood and almost fell back down on his bad leg. He laughed in pain. "Ah…I should have been more careful…"

Yamamoto made his way to Gokudera and shouted. "OOOII! Gokudera! Can you hear me?" He knelt down to hear if Gokudera answered. He frowned when he heard nothing. Then the rocks rumbled. He backed away and debris flew everywhere. They saw a glimpse of Gokudera's Sistema CAI before he came out of his Cambio Forma.

"You-_cough-_damn-_cough-"_ Gokudera was coughing again as he sat up and pushed the table away and hung an arm around it. "Stupid baseball nut…what the hell were you thinking, falling into a trap like that? You almost got me killed!"

"Sorry." Yamamoto gave him a pained look oh guilt.

"Tch."

They heard voices from the room above. "Help! We're in here!" Fabio cried to the guards outside.

The three shared a look. "Who has the diadem?" Gokudera croaked and stood. Mukuro raised it triumphantly. "Can you get us all out of here?"

Mukuro chuckled. "Kufufu. You know that I can't. And even if I could I won't help a bunch of weaklings who got themselves so injured. But," he said when they were about to argue, "I will wait outside to see your despicable selves run for your lives. I will take that as payment and revenge for not being able to have more fun here." With that, Vongola Tenth's Mist Guardian disappeared.

"That bastard…the next time I see him will be the last time he speaks," Gokudera promised.

Yamamoto frowned. "Let's get out of here. Come, Kojirou, Jirou." His partners vanished as they returned to his necklace. Gokudera brushed off the worse of the dust and walked to the door. He wrenched it open and breathed in clean air.

"Shoot. They're coming. Hurry up!" He and Yamamoto ran as fast as they could.

"Stop!" They heard the guards order from behind. They flinched as bullets hit the walls beside them. They dodged the rest, thanks to training with Reborn, and made a turn. Gokudera led the way out. Several times, they had to fight pass a group of men who nearly had them captured just because of their numbers. It was twenty to one, but they still made it.

"Through the window!" Gokudera shouted to Yamamoto as they fought through their sixth party. Yamamoto nodded silently. From their distance, Gokudera tossed a dynamite at the window to cause the glass to shatter. Then they jumped through the opening and Yamamoto heard a boom as they landed on the lawn; Gokudera had left a few presents for the guards inside. They scrambled to their feet and ran to the edge of the property with chaos running loose behind them. Somehow, Mukuro managed to set ablaze the fourth floor and he destroyed the third one completely during his absence.

They found Mukuro leaning against a tree with the diadem twirling on his fingers. He looked disappointed.

"And here I thought I would have some fun seeing you two beg for help…kufufu."

"Oh, shut it and let's go! There's only about half an hour left."

Mukuro for once didn't disagree as they ran.

"Why aren't you just disappearing like you usually do?" Yamamoto asked him, panting slightly. The two looked at him weirdly. "What?"

"You're out of breath," they replied in unison and glared at each other.

"Ah…well, it _has_ been a long day."

They decided not to comment since Yamamoto was obviously trying to hide it even though he was failing miserably.

"I was just in the feeling of beating this white haired old man in a fair race for once," was Mukuro's reply, giving Gokudera a smirk.

Gokudera glared. "So you think you can run faster than me? Bring it on!"

"Count me in!" Yamamoto said.

Gokudera scoffed. "You look ready to drop, Baseball Freak."

"Yeah right!" Yamamoto exclaimed and sped up so quickly that Gokudera and Mukuro had to take a few seconds to catch up to him.

* * *

><p>When they reached the mansion, Mukuro squinted through the mist and tried to see the real thing. Still, he could not manage it. Why was Jay so good with illusions?<p>

They barged in. The butler was not there to stop them, so they shrugged their shoulders and walked up the stairs to Jay's study. They noticed that the mansion looked much emptier than the last time they were here.

Yamamoto reached their first and knocked on the door. By now, he was panting and anxious to sit down.

"Come in."

Gokudera pushed open the doors and walked in with the other two following suit.

"We got it, and there's still five minutes to spare," Gokudera said as he looked at the large grandfather clock in the room. The shelves were empty and the Gatherer's desk was cleared off. The only thing on it were his elbows.

Jay nodded his head slowly and motioned for them to come forwards. Yamamoto sagged against the very cushioned chair and closed his eyes blissfully. Gokudera and Mukuro took up the remaining chairs and placed the diadem on the desk between them. Jay picked it up and with one glance, he could tell that it was the real thing.

"Very good of you to have brought it out in one piece. I thank you."

"Where's V-Metal?" Gokudera asked gruffly.

"It is being brought to you right now. If you would just wait for a few more minutes, you will be able to leave here. And I would suggest for you to leave immediately."

"We've been here for about four days," Yamamoto muttered. "I wonder how Tsuna's doing."

"He'll do fine," Gokudera said through gritted teeth. Jay was looking at the curiously but he asked no questions.

The butler knocked on the door and opened it. He brought in a trolley as well and on it was their metal.

Although at first they couldn't tell that it was their metal because it was inside the thing box.

"Bring it here, on the table, please," Jay told the butler quickly and pointed to the middle for the table. The diadem was already set aside. The butler did as he was told and left the room quietly.

"In here is Vanadio Metal. You may look inside to see if you wish. The uses of it are to be remained a secret to those who do not handle it personally, so I will not reveal its true effects. But mind you—do not let it come into contact with sunlight. Always keep it in this box. Talbot will know what to do with it when you bring it to him. You may open it now, as it is in the middle of the night and there is no sun. Do you know how it looks?"

They nodded. Gokudera opened the box and the three of them looked inside.

"That's it," Gokudera said. Mukuro narrowed his eyes a bit more.

"I should have remembered," Mukuro said quietly. They turned to him.

"What?"

He brought out the lens that belonged to Daemon Spade and used it to look at the gold. Jay could have been considered the most curious man anyone could find on Earth, with how he was looking at Mukuro's lens.

"It's real." He put them swiftly away.

"Boy, where did you get those from?" Jay asked, not caring that he was insulted for giving them false items. While he asked this question, he waved a hand at the box and the line where they were able to open it disappeared. Now there was no crack to open the lid.

"None of your business."

Jay frowned but sighed reluctantly. "I suppose everyone has a few of their secrets. I think I would like to thank you three for retrieving this for me," he said gravely, "in return I will give you a bit of advice." They leaned in. "Unless you have a good place to hide, I would suggest for the three of you to board the first train or ship or boat you can find and get out of this town. It will be lurking with enforcers almost immediately."

"We can hide ourselves," Mukuro said plainly and stood. Jay laughed.

"Oh-ho? Can you really? Even I will be leaving this town and off to the next one. Goodbye. And I hope to never meet you again." He stood and walked away with the diadem, humming.

* * *

><p>The next morning, they boarded the train back to Vongola Mansion even though they wanted to travel to Tsuna, or to at least travel back with him. Now, it seemed impossible. Gokudera had thought that they could stay for as long as they wanted, but Yamamoto found out that their tickets had an expiry date.<p>

"What? Let me see that!" Gokudera snatched the tickets out of Yamamoto's hands and swore.

He ran to the train station in his guise and demanded for three tickets to their destination. As Talbot had said, they were not selling any more tickets to go to that region.

"I am sorry sir, but there is only one train available and all the seats for that train have been booked," the man insisted when Gokudera threatened him for the tickets. Glaring fiercely at the man, he went back to their lodgings and told them the news.

Now, they were at the train station, waiting for the train. They were just one minute from missing the train, as they have argued back and forth about things on the way there. When they were finally on the platform, the conductor looked at their tickets and escorted them to the VIP area of the train. The instant the door opened, the three of them were blasted by the loud volume of none other than Ryohei Sasawaga, the growling of Hibari Kyoya, the silence of Chrome, the wailing Lambo, and the yelling Vongola Decimo, Sawada Tsunayoshi.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **You didn't read wrong when I said they saw everyone else on the train with them. I won't continue this way though, so don't worry. I will continue on from where we left off.

The next chapter will begin from the time when Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro left the train. At that point, the rest of the Guardians have not gone to their destination yet.

**_-LLM_**

**_Edited 2015-06-09th_**


	22. Intermission

**RECAP: **Gang's stuck in the past and Adult Reborn demands that they go look for materials to get them back, so Talbot can fix the time machine. Most of the stuff is gathered, but they still need more. Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro completed their task. Now, we're rewinding back to the train with Tsuna, Ryohei, Chrome, Lambo, and Hibari, just after the trio left. Hibari and Ryohei are next to leave.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty Two<strong>

**Right after Gokudera, Mukuro, and Yamamoto left the train…**

Tsuna let out a sigh as he watched the town fade into the distance as the train increased its speed. He turned away from the window feeling slightly worried.

"Sawada! Join me for a race on top of the train!"

Tsuna was shaking his head before Ryohei finished his sentence. "No, I'm fine…you should stay in the train Onii-san. You've gotten enough exercise already, with all that running."

"There's never enough exercise, Sawada! Didn't I teach you that before! Come on! I will teach you the extreme ways!"

_EEP…_ Tsuna backed away with a nervous smile on his face.

"Honestly… I'm fine!" He eyed the door to his room. "A-And I'm tired, so wake me up when the meal comes around, 'kay? Bye!"

His door slammed, leaving a stunned Ryohei behind. Chrome was sitting calmly in a chair with Lambo snoring away on her lap.

Ryohei snapped out of his thinking and stormed up to Tsuna's door. He banged on it, threatening to break it open. "SAWADA! LET'S GO TO THE _EXTREME—"_

"U-Um…" He paused when Chrome spoke. "Boss should rest…"

_Ah thanks Chrome! You're a life saver!_ Tsuna thought as he collapsed onto the bed.

"Hn. Don't even _think_ of running around, Sasagawa. Or you'll feel the wrath of the Disciplinary Committee." Hibari raised a tonfa to clarify what the "wrath of the Disciplinary Committee" was. "I'll bite you to death."

Ryohei gulped. "A-Ah…that's some _extreme _thinking, Hibari…" he said cautiously. Chrome muffled a laugh at the boxer's face. She's been around him enough to know that he barely spoke in such a calm manner.

"Gyappi! Ne! Ne! Lambo-san wants food _now,"_ Lambo whined to Chrome.

"Not now," she chided softly. "The food will be coming soon. Be patien—"

"Lambo-san want food!"

Chrome tilted her head away so her ear wouldn't get the full blast of complaint.

"YOSH! Come on, Lambo! Let's go tell them to hurry up then!" Ryohei said and grinned. He finally had something to do.

"Wait!" Chrome reached out to stop them from disturbing the chef, but they were already gone with Lambo riding on Ryohei's shoulders. She let out a breath and sat down.

_Hibari-san and Sasagawa-san are leaving us next…what will they face?_

* * *

><p>"They really know how to cook here," Tsuna leaned back on his chair, bloated.<p>

"Lambo-san wants more!"

"No."

"Nnn! Tsunaa!"

"Lambo you're going to stuff yourself until you're as fat as a pig if you keep eating!"

"I'm bored!"

"That's no excuse…" Tsuna sweatdropped.

"When do we get off?" Ryohei stared at a map stuck to the wall with a blank expression on his face. Tsuna rose to stand beside him all the while wondering the same thing.

"Erm…I don't know…where are you going again?"

Ryohei pulled out his ticket, which was surprisingly whole.

"Hm…."

Tsuna was about to lean in to see the destination when Ryohei declared, "We're getting off at Alessandria!" He blinked at Ryohei.

"Eto… Onii-san, are you sure you're right?"

"Of course!"

"…Right…Okay…" Tsuna himself was unsure of whether that was the actual destination, since he forgot the names of the towns and cities they were to visit. But he was pretty sure that Alessandria was _not_ one of them. He shrugged. _Oh well. _

Tsuna walked back to the couch and table, where Chrome and Lambo were currently sitting. Dame-Tsuna resurfaced for just a few seconds, and he tripped over his own feet.

"_Hiiiee!"_

Lambo jumped from the seat he took beside Chrome and landed in front of Tsuna with a very evil looking face, with a laugh to match it.

"NYAHAHAHA, BAKA TSUNA! I'm telling Reborn that you tripped and screamed!" Tsuna's eyes widened significantly.

"No! Lambo please don't!"

"Mm…" Lambo put a finger to his chin and grinned again. "Only if Tsuna will be Lambo-san's subordinate!"

"Please tell me you're joking…" _Lambo's been saying that for what, two years now? Why hasn't he given up yet! No one's going to be his servant!_ Tsuna's thoughts distracted him from the oncoming cow that fell on his back, making him groan and twitch.

"Lambo, I think you should get off Boss," Chrome knelt down to pick Lambo up.

"But!"

"No buts," Tsuna mumbled and rolled over. "Thanks Chrome! You're a life saver…" Chrome nodded her head silently.

Ryohei roared which made Tsuna and Chrome flinch.

"Onii-san…?"

"Why aren't we there yet? I NEED TO MOVE TO THE _EXTREME!"_

* * *

><p><em>Giotto's Problems II will now continue…<em>

"So, where's G?" Jules asked.

"Where's G, Lampo?" Giotto turned to his Lightening Guardian all the while glancing at Jules from the corner of his eye. She was twirling her little spoon in the tea cup, patiently waiting for an answer. If one were to meet her right now, they would think that she was a properly raised young lady of a well respected family from France who moved to Sicily some years ago. But of course, he knew better than to think that. If they didn't give her a satisfying soon, she would begin to search for G herself.

_And who knows what will happen _this_ time if that happens,_ Giotto thought and frowned.

"I don't know where he is," Lampo furrowed his brows at Lampo. "He's _your_ best friend and right hand man. Shouldn't _you_ know?" He hurled the ball back at Giotto.

Giotto turned to Jules and spoke. "He said that he was busy—had to take care of something, he said," which wasn't a total lie, "he promised me that he'd meet us all for dinner though." A total lie; G would never volunteer to attend a suicidal dinner.

"Hm, alright. Then could you tell me where my Alaude is? Even though you have kept him busy for so long, he must have a free schedule today of all days," Jules reasoned, thinking aloud, "I will go see him now," she declared and left her chair and out the door before Lampo could open his mouth.

Giotto was just as fast and left to follow her. He turned his head back and made a hand gesture which clearly meant red alert. Lampo sighed and slid further into his seat. After a few minutes, the door to the room opened slowly. He opened one eye to see who it was. Daemon's head peered in. When he saw that Lampo was alone, he stepped in, followed by G, Knuckle, and Asari.

"What are you all doing here—hey you left me with Giotto and Jules on purpose! You were there all long!"

G snorted. "Whatever."

Daemon glared at G distastefully. "It's your fault that she's here!"

"Correction: It's _Alaude's_ fault that she's here. Whose sister do you think she is?"

"G, Daemon, let's not get excited over this," Knuckle took the seat beside Lampo and turned to his companions. "Well, what are we going to do for these few days? Does anyone know how long she's _really_ planning on staying here?"

"Usually, when she visits around this time, Jules only stays for…three days. Five, at most," Asari offered.

"Let's hope it's three," G snuffed out his cigarette in the ashtray sitting on a side table.

"Where's Alaude anyways?" Lampo yawned and ruffled his hair. "He should be keeping her busy so she doesn't bother Ore-sama."

"I'm going to kill him," G muttered under his breath and paced the room. "And that woman needs to go find another vacation house that doesn't have Vongola written all over it."

"It's partly your fault too, you know," Asari said carefully. Lampo gave him a sharp look. It seemed like Asari forgot that he was walking on thin ice at the moment. G stopped walking and shot Asari a very furious glare.

"Well how should I know that would happen?" He hissed. "That was what…six years ago. Who would have known that she was serious about it?"

"Alaude warned you about it. I think that was actually the only time that he tried to help you," Asari put in.

"Well I wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for—" G stopped in midsentence. They looked at him with a questioning look

"If it wasn't for…?" Lampo prodded ever so carefully. G seeped in anger silently in his corner of the room.

Realisation suddenly hit everyone else as they remembered _why_ G was in this mess in the first place.

"Why am I always the one in the dark?" Lampo asked the group. "Again, I _don't know what happened!"_

"YOU DON'T NEED TO KNOW," G shouted at Lampo as his face flushed from anger.

"Now, G…you're going to pull something if you keep on shouting. Would he?" Asari turned to Knuckle for confirmation. Knuckle took this question seriously.

"I do not know if he will "pull something" but I do know that his heart is not at peace right now. He needs to calm himself before he commits a sin that he didn't wish to commit."

Asari grinned and looked back at G who was looking at them with narrowed eyes and scrunched up nose. "And there you have it, G!"

"What the hell...you're actually…oh, forget it!" G threw his hands into the air and turned to leave. "You and your crazy talk... I'm out of here! Tell Giotto I went ahead to look at the railways."

"Oooh, no you don't," Daemon yanked him back by the crook of his arm.

"Get…your hands…_off_ me, you…!" G forcefully pulled his arm free but stayed in the room.

"Nufuf…there's no way I'm allowing you to leave the rest of us to withstand these few torturous days." G cocked an eyebrow. "_You_ won't allow me to? Who do you think you are? I only listen to Primo. So unless you are him, don't expect me to listen to you."

Daemon opened his mouth as if he was going to retort, but he closed it instead, with a sly smile. G's eyes narrowed. _What's this man thinking of now?_

"Actually," Lampo said, trying to get their attention since for once, he knew of something that they didn't. And he knew that this something would throw them all into another panic. They caught his tone of voice and looked at the youngest man in the group wearily.

"Giotto promised Jules that we would all dine together tonight."

Silence filled the room.

"Someone save us."

…

Giotto was still following Jules around his mansion, making sure she didn't…_do_ anything to it.

"The place doesn't change much, does it Giotto?"

"No, it doesn't."

"I really look forward to staying here with you all again. It's been six years since my brother left home but it seems like it happened just this morning."

"I'm sorry he had to come," Giotto sincerely apologised as fell into step beside her. "I really needed him at the time. It was hectic and he was the person we all counted on for giving us victory."

Jules smiled…then it faltered. She abruptly stopped walking and peer at something behind Giotto's head.

"Giotto, what's that?"

He turned to stare at a portrait. He cocked his head. "Well…that's…it's a portrait of Cozart, G, and me when we were younger. You know of it. Cozart was betting that G couldn't' stand still for more than ten minutes, so he made us stand still for a painter…"

"I know that story —that's not what I'm asking for though."

Giotto looked at the portrait more closely. "I'm afraid I don't know what you are asking for then."

"That man in the background. This painter must have been very skilled to have drawn him in as well when he was probably long gone when he placed the brush against the canvas."

"No, actually he was just an assistant who needed practice for his apprenticeship. He needed us to stay half an hour longer than a master would have needed us to. He wouldn't have been able to paint a man just strolling by," Giotto stared closely at the picture now, intent on the man. "He was only good at drawing details, if only they didn't move."

Maids passed them and hurried to curtsey though Jules just waved them by and kept her eyes on the painting.

"Then that man must have been standing there as long as you two have." Leave it to Alaude's relative to figure something suspicious of something that was done so many years ago. "What were the instructions you gave to this artist?"

Giotto rubbed his chin. "Cozart was the one who started it. I don't really remember. It was something along the lines of, 'paint whatever you can see'…oh, yes, that's right. Look, you can see him laughing right there," Giotto pointed to the far right of the painting and they could see half of Cozart's body in the frame, laughing like a madman. Giotto laughed. "It was a good day," he sighed and narrowed his eyes at the painting and focused on the mysterious man wearing pale blue in the background. "Oh…my god…"

Jules snapped her head to him. "What?"

"I just remembered that my head was sending out alarm signals like crazy."

"Your Hyper Intuition was telling you that someone was following you and you ignored it? Is that how you let this man follow you for so long?" She demanded.

"I didn't know it was my Hyper Intuition. I thought I was having a headache." Jules sucked in a breath and released it. "Later, when I learned about my abilities, I have already forgotten about that time in the market. I didn't investigate further."

"Well, how about now?" She asked. Giotto began to shake his head. "No, I don't. I'll ask everyone else about it later." With that promise, Jules shrugged elegantly and beamed.

"Giotto, I've missed those cakes they make in that kitchen of yours! Do you think they could make me a small strawberry cake right now?"

"Yeah, sure," he said absentmindedly, still thinking about the portrait. It was probably nothing, but it bothered him that they were followed, even that long ago.

"Then let's go! I remember that the last time I came, it was too sweet. I told your cook about it before I left, just one on one, on some cooking ideas. I wonder if he fixed it up."

"Mm," Giotto said. It couldn't have been the Mafia. Heck, they didn't even make the vigilant group yet.

"But I do like the cocktail. It's the best in the world!"

"You flatter him," Giotto murmured, still in his thoughts.

"I was thinking of making the dinner into a party, between us and some close friends. The Cavallone Famiglia could come, no? And I do look forward to seeing G again."

"Yes… that would be a good idea." His friend might remember something about that time, since they told him about it later on. And maybe G would too. It was better if he asked all of them.

Jules squealed and had a huge, gleaming smile on her face and her hands were covering her mouth in delight. They were just a few paces away from the kitchen. "Really? _Really?"_

Giotto paled when he realised that he must have agreed to something he usually wouldn't.

"What?"

"You'd let me host a party?"

Giotto's eyes widened. "No! Where did you get that idea from?"

"You just promised!"

"I didn't. Now stop this nonsense," a drop of sweat rolled down his face as he led the way to the kitchens. "We don't have time for a party. A dinner just between my Guardians and you will be fine. There is no need to make a big fuss about it."

"But…"

"No," he said firmly, allowing no protesting to come through.

"Giottoo!"

"I won't have it. In fact, I think I'd go as far as to say that I forbid it." He walked faster and opened the doors. They were hit by the heat.

She pouted. "You're always so strict! Did becoming a boss make you so?"

"I'm sure it hasn't." Giotto smiled and everyone in the room as they greeted him. He walked up to the cook.

"Mace, do you have a moment?" The new head cook, Mace, nodded and followed Giotto to a quieter area of the kitchen with Jules in tow, forgetting about making a party. _I was so caught up with that portrait that I forgot about this side of her,_ Giotto thought and sighed. _And it was stupid of me to let my guard down around her. She's like an enemy in the base, with the way she makes us on the alert day and night._

"I'm sure you remember Jules from the time you were an assistant?" Mace glanced at Jules uncomfortable and nodded.

"Oh, you were an assistant back then?" Jules cried. "That's amazing! Who would have thought that a helper could have created something so magnificent?"

"Yes…anyhow, Jules would like to try some of the strawberry cake that you made for her final meal here last time." Giotto tried to communicate with Mace with his eyes. Mace got the message.

"Yes, yes. Lady—"

"Just Jules," she insisted.

"Ah…" Mace winced and looked at Giotto.

"Jules just let them call you Lady Jules, would you?" They are used to addressing the upper class with respect, even if Giotto continuously tries to make them do otherwise. Jules sighed.

"Oh, alright. Now before you leave, Giotto," she said when he stepped out the room. He paused and turned his head. "Are you sure you don't want me to—" Giotto smiled softly at her.

"It's, really, quite alright to have a simple dinner sometimes, don't you think?"

She let out another lady-like sigh before he closed the door.

"Now, Make this quick please," Jules told Mace, "I still have to see my brother, after all those months."

Giotto headed back to his study to finish reading G's report on his latest outing. Half way there, he noticed something purple gleaming on the floor.

_The staff must have missed it,_ he though, approaching the little ball. He picked it up and snorted. It was Lambo's grape candy. It must have fallen some time ago, seeing the dust being collected on the sweet.

_Oh, shoot,_ Giotto winced inwardly. _We don't have anything from Decimo's family lying around…do we?_

* * *

><p>Tsuna was rubbing his head silently. His ears were pounding and he had a splitting headache. He should have known better than to stand beside Ryohei for more than ten minutes—no, make it five minutes. That boxer was so loud he could cause the enemy to cry mercy before they even fought!<p>

Now, he was standing at a safe distance, away from whatever Ryohei and Lambo were up to.

Tsuna noticed that the train was slowing down. Which meant that they were approaching their next stop.

He heard a faint voice call out the name, which was _Bivona._

He cocked his head at the name. _Did I hear that from somewhere?_ Tsuna spotted Lambo's cow printed shirt. _Nah, it probably reminded me of Bovino, that's all._

A woman came into their part of the train and asked to see their tickets to see if they expired the ride yet.

_**(A/N): I'M PRETTY SURE THAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE, BUT ON WITH THE SHOW…**_

"_You have to show me your tickets, sirs."_

"_Here,"_ Tsuna handed his to her. The rest did the same. She narrowed her eyes at Ryohei's ticket. She looked at him with a stern face.

"_Are you planning on getting off, boy?"_

"_What? I extremely don't understand you!"_

Tsuna blinked. _"E-Excuse me…why does he have to…get off?"_

She waved the ticket in front of them. _"This ticket goes as far as Bovina. Or could you not read as well as listen?"_

"_What!"_ Tsuna exclaimed. _"We're very sorry! But, why can the ticket not go further?"_

"_It has only been paid to go this far. To go further, you will need to buy another ticket, which is another cost,"_ the woman said plainly. Tsuna scratched his head and noticed something to the side, out on the side walk. His eyes bugged out when he looked a second time.

"Hibari-san!" _He's already out there!_

Hibari looked up at the call of his name. He directed the glare at Ryohei, who was still on the train.

"Hn?"

"When did you get there?"

Hibari stared at Tsuna for a second, and turned back to face something out the window. Tsuna sweatdropped.

"Hibari-san must have known that the correct stop was Bivona…Onii-san, how did you…?" He smacked his forehead. How did he forget that Ryohei sucked at reading?

"You should join Hibari-san now," Chrome said wisely, "before he gets angry." Tsuna shivered in agreement. Ryohei grinned and walked towards the window, after giving Tsuna a rib-cracking bear hug.

"I'll see you in a while, Sawada!"

With that, he raised the window and jumped out, much to the annoyance and objection of the woman. Tsuna sighed and tossed Ryohei's bag out with him. "Good luck, Hibari-san, Onii-san!" Ryohei waved back enthusiastically as Hibari led the way into the town.


	23. Aah, peace and quiet!

I'm finally free! FREE! :D No more exams to worry about… no more school… aaah…

(wince) It's been so long since I've updated…yikes…

Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter! Every review and favourite and alert is appreciated! :D

Thank you to all who are still reading this and hasn't given up because it takes me to long just to write something like this!

* * *

><p><strong>Recap:<strong>

**The group is now traveling by train to new destinations**

**Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro** have successfully retrieved their object and made the trade with a man named Jay. They go back to the train station and discover that Tsuna is already on it, coming back from his mission.

We rewind back to the time when Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro just left the train.

Now, **Hibari and Ryohei**get off the train to search for the Gatherer who will give them a task to complete before handing over…a bomb!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty Three<strong>

Ryohei jogged after Hibari, who was quickly becoming a small figure. "Ooooi! Hibari! Wait up!" _How did he get so far in just a few seconds? _Ryohei wondered in amazement. _Hibari's EXTREME! I must catch up!_

Hibari held an irritated expression on his face for two seconds before it turned to indifference when Ryohei caught up.

"Hibari, where are we going first?" Ryohei asked. Hibari grunted as a reply and Ryohei cocked his head. He bit his lip gently as a reminder to _not, _for the life of him, _scream_ or talk louder than deemed acceptable near this guy.

Instead, he tried to get a good look at where they were. He noticed that there wasn't a single soul in sight. He also noticed that toys were left where they were and laundry was left half done. Drinks were left half empty. Even though he noticed this, he didn't quite understand something that the townsfolk knew immediately. Beside him was a teenager who held a very scary aura around him. It was enough to cause anyone nearby to shiver and wish to go elsewhere. The most interesting thing is that Ryohei was the one who caused Hibari to be like this, although he himself is not aware of it. The people who were previously outside were inside; far away from the scary feeling they felt outdoors.

It was by anyone's guess as to why Ryohei was immune to this tense atmosphere surrounding him.

After surveying his surroundings, he had nothing to do but to concentrate on shutting up.

But alas, Ryohei could not hold it in.

"Arrrrrrrrrrrrg, Hibari! We need to talk, _TO THE EXTREME!"_ Hibari closed his eyes and scrunched his eyebrows. He gritted his teeth and said, "To the Gatherer."_ Now be quiet,_ Hibari thought.

"But _where_ is the Gatherer?"

_Ignore him, ignore him, ignore him, ignore him…_

"Hey…Hibari…"

_Ignore him, ignore him, ignore him, ignore him Ignore him, ignore him, ignore him, ignore him—_

"HIBARI!"

Hibari let out a breath and turned on Ryohei angrily with his left tonfa raised. "Herbivore…I'm warning you…_again…_don't…shout. Or else…I'll bite you to death. Do you understand me?"

Ryohei blinked. He opened his mouth.

"But Sawada said that we should finish this as soon as possible! We need to return home! I'm worried about Kyoko!" Hibari could feel his ears crying in pain. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to threaten the loudmouth in such close proximity. Hibari put down his tonfa and began walking aimlessly. He slowly zoned out Ryohei's loud shouts as he thought.

_Why am I doing this in the first place? These herbivores should leave me alone._

"Hibari! We need to work together!"

_And if that wasn't annoying enough, I have to work with this loud herbivore. However,_ Hibari concluded, _he does have a point. Once the supplies are delivered to that man, Talbot, I can go back to Namimori. Kusakabe had better look after things while I was gone. If he doesn't…I will bite him to death._

"HIBARI!"

Hibari hissed and whacked Ryohei on the head with a tonfa. Ryohei dodged at the last minute and only a few strands of his hair cut off as a result. Hibari was about to advance when he sensed people approaching. Many people approaching.

He stood straight and lowered both arms but kept a good grip on his weapons.

"_Who are you? Show yourselves,"_ Hibari narrowed his eyes when three men in their thirties and forties came into the open from behind a building. It was then that Hibari noticed that they were off the clean and well kept streets, and into the unused part of town. How had they traveled so far?

"What are they here for?" Ryohei grumbled and put on an extremely confused expression on his face—all the while preparing his fists to fight them.

"Hn," Hibari spotted four more appear behind him on the left. He didn't turn his head, but kept track of them with his eyes. He shifted so that he stood slightly in front of Ryohei. "I'll deal with you later, Herbivore."

Ryohei stepped forwards as well. "YOSH! I don't know what's going on, but these guys don't look like good news to me!"

_Hand over the money, you foreigners!"_ One cried and revealed a thin, long blade.

"_WHAT? WHAT MADE YOU THINK THAT WE HAD MONEY RED HEAD?"_ Ryohei demanded of the man who, had red hair.

"_Jose, don't even bother talking to that kid," _another man muttered quietly so the two Guardians couldn't hear them.

Hibari felt a vein bulge near his temple. _"Herbivore…who did you just call a 'kid'?" _The said man looked up and flinched when he met Hibari's glare. Another friend of the stranger nudged his side.

"_Hey, what are you doing? He's just one person. Let's get him! That bracelet on his wrist looks expensive!"_

Hibari's eyes narrowed to slits when he heard this. Obviously, the words were not meant for his ears, but he heard them nonetheless. _"It's way past your time to be disciplined," _Hibari told them and swung his pair of tonfa into the ready position. _"I will gladly discipline you herbivores into submission."_

"_What did you just say, brat!"_ The red head snarled and ran towards Hibari. The others were quick to follow.

"Hibari, I didn't know that the Vongola Gear is that expensive," Ryohei said and glanced at his own, currently on his arm. "That's _extreme!"_ He looked up and dodged a punch expertly and grabbed the other hand of his attacker, which wielded a pocketknife. "You know, you should fight me fairly, mister! Hand to hand!"

Of course, the man didn't understand Japanese so he totally ignored Ryohei and used his legs to kick. Ryohei frowned at the unfairness of the fight and tried to keep true to his own rules, even if his own opponent didn't.

He soon tossed the man into his friend and the two went tumbling. He noticed that Hibari already had four down at his side. Ryohei had some breathing room as all his opponents were down. He counted the attackers and came up with ten of them on the ground.

"Aaaarrg!" Ryohei's head snapped up and he saw two more charging at him with huge rock being carried between them, planning on hitting Ryohei with it.

Ryohei's eyes bugged out. "EXTREME! What's that for?"

Hibari heard and rolled his eyes as he kicked at someone who was trying to sneak up on him. He continued to observing them calmly as he brought down the enemies. _Poorly clothed and weapons that can barely cut through grass. They're also inexperienced with fighting. As well as poorly disciplined. _

Five minutes later, the two teens stood over twenty unconscious men.

"That was an _extreme_ workout," Ryohei huffed. He looked around and frowned. "This town seems dangerous TO THE EXTREME…we should be more careful, Hibari—" The prefect was already a few metres away from where Ryohei stood by the time he looked up. "Oi, Hibari! Wait!"

Hibari almost let out a groan when Ryohei caught up again to him. Couldn't they just hurry up and go home already? This boxer was beginning to get on his nerves. Maybe he should just explain things to Ryohei more thoroughly. Yes, it meant more talking, but it also meant more peace and quiet for a while.

"Herbivore," Hibari raised his voice so he could be heard. He stopped walking and turned to Ryohei. His jacket flowed in the wind, still sitting on his shoulders with his red armband firmly attached to the slick, black sleeve. "If I explain things to you, you are not allowed to speak unless necessary. Understand?"

Ryohei considered this. Would he be able to do that? He nodded. _Of course I can do that! TO THE EXTREME! _"Deal!"

Hibari led them to a restaurant nearby. His glare made everyone sitting on the patio to get up and sit elsewhere. He took one of the vacant seats and made himself comfortable. Ryohei sat across from him.

A waiter came to ask for their orders.

"_What would you like to order, sirs?"_

"_Get away,"_ Hibari snapped.

The waiter let out a small shriek and darted off. Hibari snorted and turned to Ryohei.

_This is very unlike me,_ Hibari thought. _Why? Why am I doing this? Sawada Tsunayoshi…prepare yourself to be bitten to death when we get back to Namimori…I will make you pay for having me socialise with such herbivores._

"So are you going to explain?" Ryohei said slowly, making sure to lower his tone by a thousand notches.

"Hn. You know that we're here for something from a Gatherer."

Ryohei nodded and Hibari continued, "What we are here for is very reactive and will explode if not held carefully."

Ryohei's eyes widened but he forced himself to not speak. Hibari went on. "The inventor herbivore said it was some kind of atomic bomb, but not an atomic bomb." Hibari gritted his teeth at this. It didn't make sense that something was and was not something at the same time. "It is used to initiate the start of the time traveling warp hole. It is used to force it to open wide enough to allow us to travel through."

"I don't get it," Ryohei said bluntly. Hibari blinked in surprise.

The prefect was never around when people tried to explain things to Ryohei, so he didn't know how complicated it could be to just explain something to him. So now, Hibari was rethinking, wondering why he didn't understand when it was so simple. Hibari decided to give it another try.

* * *

><p><em>Giotto's Problems II<em> will now continue!

"G! There you are," Giotto grumbled when he saw his friend.

"Giotto, were you looking for me?" G was in his office, lounging on the couch. Giotto walked in and closed the doors.

"Don't act all innocent now, my beloved friend. I have a job for you."

…

Lampo sauntered over to Asari's garden. He spotted the man sitting by the rocks, observing his surroundings. He smiled when he saw Lampo.

"Do you know where Giotto or G are?"

"No, I don't. Are you looking for them?" Lampo asked as he took a seat beside Asari and poured himself a cup of green tea.

"Not me. Jules-san came earlier and asked me where they were." Lampo nearly choked at those words. He looked at Asari carefully now, trying to spot anything wrong with him. No one had an encounter with Jules without seeming slightly dishevelled.

"Asari…what did she do to you?"

Asari's mouth twitched. "She ah…" He seemed to be at a loss for words even though he tried to act cheerful.

"You can drop the act, Asari, no one can blame you," Lampo said cautiously.

Asari laughed. "Oh? What act?"

"That smile of yours," Lampo clarified. He stared at Asari a bit more, who was now simply smiling at him. "Oh forget it. I think that smile of yours is permanently stuck on your face forever."

Asari sighed and smiled tiredly now. "Come, Lampo. I will show you." Confused, Lampo stood and followed the Rain Guardian.

…

Alaude was reading over a report when he heard someone knock on his door.

"Alaude?"

Alaude looked up and saw Jules. "Jules."

She smiled. "How are you doing nowadays?"

"Busy. There's a lot to do as the founder of CEDEF."

"CEDEF," Jules said slowly as she strolled in to sit on one of the couches. "Do you think I could join?" Alaude finished signing a document and looked up at his sister. He heard the seriousness in her question, and that was never a good sign.

He left his desk to sit across from her. They stared at each other for about two minutes before Alaude closed his eyes.

"No."

"What! Why not?"

_Because you will cause more trouble for me,_ Alaude thought. He couldn't care less what she did, but if things went astray, G will get angry, or Daemon will be annoyed. Or she would be bothering one or the other Guardians, and in the end, they will take their complaints to him. And he certainly did not have time to listen to them.

"There's nothing you could do. Besides, the mafia is no place for you. Go home."

Jules gave him a glare that he himself gave others from time to time.

"What if I said no?"

"You will go home nonetheless. Father will be going to meetings, and he needs his daughter with him."

Jules furrowed her brows. "I hate going to balls with him. It always ends up with me being courted by the sons of father's business partners."

"You won't be allowed to back out of this one," Alaude said, safely directing the conversation _away_ from CEDEF employment. Jules gave him a suspicious look.

"What do _you_ know about it?"

"I know that the duke will be very offended that someone he personally invited did not 'bring his beautiful daughter to accompany him'," Alaude said, quoting the young duke word for word.

"You—how—?"

"It's in a week, isn't it?"

Jules sat straight. "I'm not going."

Alaude stared at her. "You are going."

"No."

"Where did you get this stubborn attitude from? Certainly not from me."

"Oh, I wouldn't know. Maybe it _was_ from you. After all, my _dear brother,_ you were the one who insisted on leaving for France. That left me to entertain father's guests whenever they come. If _you_ stayed, then _you, _the heir to the estates, would have had the honour to keep them company. But now, _I _have to go everywhere with father and mother. Even so, _you_ will end up inheriting everything. Unfair."

"Life isn't fair. And I don't want father's money. You need it for your dowry more than I; I already have my own finances set up here."

"I'm still not going to the ball."

"Do what you wish. But mother and father will be very disappointed in you." Alaude stared her down to submission.

"Just this once," she mumbled. "I'll leave you be then. I'll speak with you more tomorrow. I feel so tried."

She stood and gave Alaude a kiss on his cheek as farewell before leaving his room. He rested his head on the couch and sighed quietly in relief.

_Thank god she won't be staying in CEDEF. She'll cause internal conflicts before the week's end._

* * *

><p>Lampo gaped at the sight in front of him. He slowly turned to Asari and gave the man a pitied look before patting him on the arm.<p>

"We can…uhm, get this fixed in no time, Asari…no need to be upset."

Asari smiled weakly. "Thanks. I appreciate it. It's not like Jules-san did it intentionally though."

Lampo turned back to the garden and sighed. Almost half of the flowers were picked out from the ground and many more were lying in heaps on the ground. Even the trees weren't shown mercy as many of their branches were somehow torn off. At the spot that they were standing, pedals were being blown all over, making the ground more of a mess.

"This is why I _hate_ immature people," Lampo muttered.

Asari looked amused as he remembered something. "Lampo, you _do_ know that she has... how do you say it?" He paused and continued, "She has a _thing_ for G—we told you that, right?"

Lampo paled considerably. "No?"

"Oh, I thought we told you the last time we were in the meeting room," Asari mused. "Nevermind." He began to walk away.

"H-Hey! Asari! Tell ore-sama what you are talking about! Does this mean she might be staying _forever?"_ Lampo complained as Asari simply chuckled.

_To be continued..._

* * *

><p>Hibari slammed a fist onto the already beaten up table in frustration. The table groaned and began to slowly fall to the ground in pieces. Why can't the herbivore just <em>understand? <em>It was the third time that Hibari had to explain to Ryohei. At first Hibari thought that taking a few extra minutes to explain would earn him more peace, but apparently his plan backfired.

"Herbivore…"

"I still don't understand!"

"…Don't ask and stay out of my way," Hibari growled and stood so quickly the chair toppled over. The waiter hiding in the restaurant flinched, as did the other customers.

"Hibari you have to wait for me TO THE EXTREME," Ryohei protested as he ran after him. The workers of the restaurant simply sighed in relief that those customers were gone. Wait…customers…? They stared at the cream tarts that Ryohei ordered. All of them were gone. So was the table. The waiter pales.

_SMACK!_

"_You idiots! Where did the boys go?"_ Their boss demanded. He hit them with a rolled up piece of paper.

They dumbly pointed at Hibari's retreating figure.

"_Well, GO AFTER THEM!"_

"_B-But sir!"_

"_NOW!"_

* * *

><p>Hibari was officially annoyed at Ryohei now. But there was nothing he could do, since no matter how hard he may have slashed out at the boxer, he simply fell to the ground stunned, and jumps back up.<p>

_What have I done to deserve this?_ Hibari thought as Hibird landed on his head.

Ryohei continued to shout very loudly, thinking that Hibari simply had very bad hearing problems. They walked down the street with everyone staring at them incredulously. The mothers pressed their hands to their children's ears to prevent them from going deaf and the shop owners winced at the voice which was louder than what they have ever shouted or heard in their life.

"HIBARI! MAYBE YOU SHOULD EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT WE ARE DOING AGAIN! I _EXTREMELY _DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING!"

Hibari stopped when they reached an intersection. He turned to Ryohei and asked through gritted teeth, "Exactly _what_ don't you understand?"

"I _extremely_ don't get how the thing we're looking for works!"

"Ignore that."

"I also don't know how it looks!"

Hibari was about to tell Ryohei that it wasn't important but reconsidered. He thought to tell Ryohei a description of it, but decided against it because knowing the boxer he will get even more confused. _I'll draw it out for the herbivore later._

"I will draw it later. Next."

"Who are we extremely looking for?"

"A Gatherer," Hibari glared. "We've gone over this before."

"But WHO is he!"

"Not important."

"WHAT DOES HE LOOK LIKE?"

"Not important."

"HOW—"

"—Every question from here on is not important," Hibari finished. "Herbivore…stop talking."

"I CAN'T STOP TALKING TO THE EXTREME UNLESS I'M STUDYING," Ryohei exclaimed. Hibari, now used to the volume, didn't cringe.

"Then study."

"I have nothing to study!"

Hibari's brow twitched. "If you don't get a high mark in your next exam I will remove you of your position as captain of the boxing club."

"WHAT!"

"You heard me," Hibari threatened coolly. Ryohei's mouth was wide open and for once, he was speechless.

Hibari smirked inwardly as he finally found a way to keep Ryohei quiet.

When Ryohei closed his mouth and nodded at Hibari, the prefect continued on, to look for information of where their Gatherer might be staying. Ryohei followed subconsciously with his arms crossed over his chest and eyes closed. Even while doing this, he was able to follow Hibari perfectly. The prefect couldn't care less as to whether Ryohei was actually studying for the tests—all that mattered was that he would finally stop shouting.

Hibari observed the wooden houses that served as shops. He found a place which looked like a motel. Despite hating talking to other people, Hibari had no choice because he doubted that a place in the nineteenth century would have tourist shops where he could find a map. There was also the problem of him not trusting Ryohei enough to understand the answer—heck, even the question—correctly.

Without saying a word to Ryohei, he stepped in and glared at the woman at the front desk.

"_Where is the scientist in this town?"_

The woman stuttered under his glare and finally gathered her thoughts together. _"O-Oh, h-he's down at C-Cape Lane,"_ she pointed a shaky finger further down the road. _"T-Then turn to the small trail and follow it until you see his w-ware house…"_

Hibari grunted and left. The woman let out a breath and would have slid down to the ground if she wasn't already sitting.

* * *

><p>Cape Lane was a quiet road showing beautiful mansions, each with at least two acres of land. Hibari glanced back behind him to make sure that Ryohei was not planning on shouting in his ear. Satisfied, he walks down the rows of houses. There were a few people coming in and out but no one paid them any attention. Then he stopped, causing dirt and dust to fly around in the air. He looks around with careful eyes and spots the trail the woman spoke about to his right. It was well hidden in the bushes and trees but nothing escapes Hibari's eyes. He and Ryohei started upon it.<p>

"YOSH! I'M FINISHED STUDYING!" Ryohei cried out ten steps onto the trail. Birds around then shrieked and flew off in alarm.

Hibari stops and takes in a deep breath in an attempt to not explode. It seems like Ryohei does not take forever to study. But perhaps if Hibari ignores Ryohei, he would stop stalking. _I already explained everything to the herbivore, _Hibari reasoned. _There's nothing to make conversation with._ He observed that whenever Ryohei was at his loudest was when that Gokudera Hayato would insult him and then a peaceful day would end up being one of insults being thrown back and forth. Hibari snorts to himself.

Unfortunately, just after one minute, Ryohei begins to shout out observations around them loudly.

**_&^%$# !_**

Hibari huffs and collapses the tonfa and puts them in his pocket. Ryohei is on the ground, bruised and wincing. Although he avoided direct hits, Hibari's blows were still hard enough to leave marks for a few days.

"What was that for!"

"You're too loud."

"BUT—!"

Hibari swivels around and glares at Ryohei with ice-cold eyes. "Not. Another. Word."

Ryohei gulps and drops of sweat roll down his forehead.

Hibari glares one last time before speeding up to put some distance between them.

"OI Hibari, wait!"

Hibari ignores Ryohei and continued forward through the greenery until he ends up in a clearing. He hears nothing except for the birds and the wind.

"Is that it?" Ryohei grumbles as he rubs his head, all energy drained out of him by Hibari…for now. He was pointing to a short building which indeed looked like some kind of warehouse. It looked pretty broken up with holes in the roof and places boarded up places all around to block out the holes. The entire building was mostly a rusty-brown and peeling paint. Around it was a field of grass with each strand being at least as tall as their waist. From yards away, they could hear the clanking and bubbling of something going on inside. They approached the entrance and looked inside the musky, dark interior. The first thing they notice is the dark blue goopy substance that is bubbling inside a large flask that would need both hands to hold steady. Then they saw sparks on the other side of the room. A young man was bent over some parchment which looked like his research notes. He picked up a fountain pen and scribbled some more observations onto it. The two Guardians examined the man and saw that he had very light blond hair and was of average height, with a crooked nose. He had a clear face with a tattoo on his face showing a yellow spark. He seemed to be nineteen.

"_What are you here for?"_ The man inquires of them. Hibari stares at him for another second before saying, _"Where's the Gatherer?"_

The man stares back in confusion. _"Who?"_

"_OI! YOU THE SCIENTIST?" _

The man cringed at Ryohei's booming volume. So _that_ was what he heard moments ago…and here he thought it was a mysterious monster that he could use as an experiment. _Sigh._

"_Yes, I am the scientist. What can I do for you?"_

"_Give me the bomb,"_ Hibari said simply. The man stared back at him.

"_D-Did you say…BOMB?" _He sweated. _H-Hey, these are not…terrorists…are they? There is no bomb!"_

Hibari said, _"The travel bomb."_

_T-Travel bomb!_

"_Uh, no, I am afraid that…we do not…sell…those…here…?" _He squeaked out the last few words as Hibari glared him down and pulled out his weapon.

"_O-On second thought let me go check!" _And he escaped through a door which led to the second floor of the building. He charges into the open door of the living room where they all relaxed when they weren't doing anything.

"_Miss!"_ He glanced around and confirmed that the woman, Rosalia, was in the room. She was sitting by the window reading a book on the laws of physics, although she already knew it like the back of her hand. Her long green hair was tied back with a ribbon to keep it out of her pale face and she wore a dark brown dress. She looked up into her assistant's anxious eyes with her own green ones.

"_Yes, Camillo?"_

"_Two…two foreigners are downstairs!"_

"…_And?"_

"_They're looking for something called the…the travel bomb? Nothing called that even exists, no? But they were very scary, especially the one with the two sticks!"_

Rosalia blinked as she puts the book down. _"Sticks?"_

"_Yes!"_

Rosalia huffed, _"Well then. Camillo, I think you need to improve your descriptions. Make sure they're better the next time you try to describe something to me,"_ and stood from her chair to greet her suspicious guests. She petted her lizard and tells it to stay on the window sill.

Camillo hurried to follow her after committing yet another thing to his memory that needed improvement. Down the rickety steps they went.

Rosallia came to a stop in front of the counter to stand face to face with the two teens. She looked at them both from head to toe. Then she turned to Camillo and said sweetly, _"Camillo, come closer. Yes, there we go. Now, see those? Those are not _sticks; _those are night sticks, _tonfa_ in Japanese. There is a big difference, you know. I thought you were telling me that there was a mental boy here holding two branches as weapons." _She gave Camillo a disappointed look which made him ashamed of himself for not remembering what they were called. _But I cannot really be blamed; the boy was too scary for me to look at him properly!_

Rosalia looked to Hibari again and noticed that the teen was itching for a fight. She frowned. _"Why do you look familiar?"_

Hibari ignored her question and asked his own, _"Are you strong?"_

"_Obviously."_

"_Fight me."_

"_Some other time. Now what is this travel bomb you are pestering my assistant about? Who sent you?"_

"OI HIBARI! YOU GUYS TALKING EXTREMELY FAST! TALK SLOWER!"

Hibari glared at Ryohei again and threatened to close down the boxing club if he spoke again. Ryohei was silenced and Hibari smirked. _That should keep him quiet for a while. Now to bite this herbivore to death._ Hibari knew that Camillo wasn't the Gatherer when he first lay eyes on the assistant even though he claimed to be the scientist. He knew this because the assistant lacked the Dying Will Flames. But this new herbivore was different. And here she was, refusing to fight him.

Hibari lunged forwards anyways. She sighed as she side stepped him and grasped his wrists in an iron grip. Before she could fully stop them, one tonfa hit her jaw.

Her eyes narrowed. _For such a young man, he is strong. He was able to leave a bruise on me. Interesting. Too bad I don't have time to play games. _

"_To business, boy," _she said and releases Hibari and heals her bruise using her Dying Will Flames without showing them.

Hibari finds that this lady herbivore is a worthy opponent and decides to fight with her some other time, after getting what he needs.

"_The Travel Bomb. Talbot."_

"_Talbot, hm," _Rosalia murmurs. _"Very well. I will see how you do with the deal and from there I will see whether you should have the Travel Bomb."_

Hibari nods stiffly as he twitches. There were too many people in the room.

"_First, I need to get you some information on your task. Camillo. Go and get the papers I organised upstairs."_

"_Extreme! You knew were were coming!"_ Ryohei shouted. Rosalia cocks her head and nods.

"_My colleague tells me that there is a group of children collecting items. It is about time that I am paid a visit."_

Hibari scowled at the mention of being referred to as a child. Camillo came back out of breath.

"_Here you are."_

"_Thank you. Now go do what you were going before."_

Once Camillo was hidden behind a stack of papers, Camillo gave Hibar the papers. He looked through them and found pictures of the item and other pictures of places he noticed around town. There were sets of instructions on the bottom of each page as well as a description for all images. He scanned through them.

"_A gang has stolen my supplies for this month. If the contents in the crates are roughly treated or not in the correct temperature, many things will go wrong—explosions will just be the start of it. I need the two of you to safely retrieve my crates from the gang's hideout and return them to me unscathed."_

"_Hn."_

"_I will present you with the bomb if all items are in proper order. Do we have a deal?"_

Hibari grunts again, and Ryohei looks ready to burst with excitement for finally being able to do something.

"_Good. You have until tomorrow evening to bring all the crates here. There are five of them in total, and all five of them are in different areas."_

With that, Hibari and Ryohei left the building.

"THIS IS EXTREME! WE WILL EXTREMELY CHALLENGE THESE TEAMS AND WIN THE PRIZE!"

"_Miss,"_ Camillo poked his head out from behind the desk, _"did you just send those two boys on several raids against the mafia gang here?"_

"_Mm. I suppose I did. What's with that face, Camillo? You look astonished."_

"_W-Well, I am! You…they could get killed out there!"_

"_I'm sure they won't. Now just finish up Mister Josiet's request before he comes back next week. I'm sure you have a long way to go before finishing it, so get to it."_

"_R-Right…"_

* * *

><p>Ack! I was planning on making this longer since it's been a while since the last update…but I wanted to update something before tomorrow, so here it is! Terribly sorry for the delay…at least it's still June, no? :D<p> 


	24. Meet Woofie's Owner

I see the end of the road for this story… I think it will be finished in a few chapters. Thanks, everyone who stuck around and supported this! :D

And sorry but I'm going to speed things up!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty Four<strong>

Hibari handed the paper with the Travel Bomb to Ryohei and pointed at it.

"That is the travel bomb. It's what we are looking for."

Ryohei stared at it and nodded slowly. "It looks _extreme…"_

Hibari glanced back to the paper another time and grunted. The Travel Bomb had a sand timer in the middle. Then surrounding that was a wired circle made of a metal that wasn't labelled. Outside of that was another circle perpendicular to the inner one. The two were attached in such a way that will allow the inner circle to turn and rotate within the outer ring. The wire of the outer hoop was thicker and more secure.

"Hibari, where are we going first now?"

Hibari said nothing and continued his brisk walk. Ryohei frowned and followed, now scratching his head over the papers he was currently trying to decipher.

After crossing the road and turning a left then a right, Hibari stopped by the shadows of an alley and had Ryohei go in with him. Hibari pointed to a house that looked pretty shady. There were barrels of beer outside and broken up pieces of furniture. There were also splinters from other wooden objects from a brawl. The rest of the house was roughened up.

"That's where the first crate is located, herbivore. You will go look for the crate." Hibari pointed to the crate in the picture. "It's red with words in yellow."

"RIGHT! LET'S GET ON IT! I'M PUMPED UP TO THE _EXTREME!"_ Ryohei screamed and charged. Hibari was right after. Ryohei broke down the door and looked around for an opponent. The gang inside were playing cards until that moment with beer and money on the table. All looked up to stare at the sudden intrusion.

"_Who the devil are you?"_

"_ARRRRRRG! WHO WANTS TO FIGHT ME!"_

Their drunken brains registered this as a declaration of a fight, so of course they would oblige. Ryohei punched the first person who came at him and he went down. Hibari hit Ryohei's back and kicked him to a corner.

"You're supposed to be looking for the crate," Hibari growled angrily. "_I_ will bite the herbivores to death."

Ryohei grumbled and went to the other side of the room to see if there was anything under the cloth covers. Finding nothing, he went through a door which led down. Here he found the goods the gang took from a lot of people. But in the midst of these treasures, there was no crate.

"ARG! WHERE IS IT?" Ryohei rushed back upstairs and punched someone in the face when they tried to punch _him. _"You need to improve your punches! They're too slow!" He said and jogged to the steps that led upstairs.

"_What's that noise going on downstairs?"_ Someone from the second floor shouted down. _"Are you guys fighting again?" _This was what the man said before he saw Ryohei. _"HEY! Who are you!"_

"_I'm Ryohei Sasagawa!"_

"_Sasa-what? Oi! There are intruders in the house! Get him!" _

Ryohei heard at least five other voices as he ran the last few steps. He was met with a bat which he ducked instinctively. As the man pulled the bat back, Ryohei gave the man an uppercut and stepped over him to block a blow from the next person.

"EXTREME! Do you know where the crate is?" Ryohei ducked a blow that would have cut off half of his hair and flipped the man over his shoulder so he knocked over the other two who were now trying to stand.

Downstairs, Hibari tripped an opponent and knocked another unconscious at the same time. All the while, he was smirking which really made the gang members shiver and lose self confidence. When he came close to them, the bloodlust they see in his eyes make them think that they were fighting a real monster. He continued to 'bite them to death' and scowled when he found that he already defeated them all.

He looked around, hoping to see if there was anyone else who was standing. Finding none, he decides to go to the second floor. There he saw that Ryohei dealt with them and was currently looking for the crate. Seeing that he was working in that room, Hibari walked to the other room on the second floor to look around. Then he went back downstairs to the basement, where he saw the red and yellow crate. He walked up to it and stared. Wasn't the herbivore in here in the first place? Hibari boiled with anger and released his anger on the wall. He then dragged the box up to the main floor before going up to the second floor.

"Herbivore."

"Oh, Hibari! Did you fine it!"

"Hn."

"Wait!" Ryohei shouted when Hibari descended the stairs. He saw the box and exclaimed, "EXTREME! Hibari, where did you find that!"

"It was in the cellar," Hibari hissed at Ryohei. "The place where you were in."

"…Oh…" Ryohei realised that he missed the crate when he was searching. "Oops," he said sheepishly.

"_Oops?_ You wasted my time herbivore…" Hibari glowered at Ryohei. "I'll bite you to death after biting Sawada and that Gatherer to death."

"Sawada? What does he have to do with any of this EXTREME stuff?" Ryohei asked as Hibari dumped the box into Ryohei's arms.

"Hn. Next stop." He left swiftly with Ryohei following close behind. He continued to pester Hibari as the surrounding neighbourhood stared at the gang's hideout in ruins, then at the two who left the house unharmed.

* * *

><p>By the evening, Hibari and Ryohei had collected four boxes with four places in the town looking as though a mini tornado had passed through.<p>

Later, Hibari was getting bored of the place so he decided to patrol the streets.

* * *

><p>Four boxes littered the floor of the motel room Ryohei booked for him and Hibari with connected rooms. Although Hibari had his own room, he would rather sleep on the roof, which was slanted. It didn't matter.<p>

BAM!

"HIBARRRRRRRRRRRRRI!" Ryohei charged into their room and looked around for the prefect. Seeing that he wasn't in there, he closed the door.

"HIBARIIIIII!" He ran for the stairs that led to the top floor, and then he climbed the ladder to the trap door to the roof.

Hibari stirred when he heard shouting coming from below. Then there was the slam of a door and his eyes snapped open with annoyance. He stayed where he was as Hibird sang Nami-chuu's anthem. His name was shouted a second time. Then seconds later he heard the trap door open.

"_HIBARIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"_

"_What?"_ Hibari snapped.

"Look at this TO THE EXTREME!"

Hibari rolled his eyes upwards to glance at the paper.

"So?"

"Can you read it to me? My Italian sucks TO THE EXTREME!"

"…Hn."

"I THINK I KNOW WHAT IT IS, BUT WHAT DO THE WORDS SAY? I think that it's a wanted poster but what's it for!"

Hibari sighed and read it out, just to satisfy the boxer. "Wanted alive, one foreign boy, black hair and grey eyes, young, around eighteen or seventeen, slim, wears black coat with red arm band. Wanted for mass destruction of the town, ten gold crowns is the reward for this boy's capture."

His picture was printed onto the piece of paper, smack in the middle.

"DOESN'T THAT MEAN YOU'RE A CRIMINAL?"

"No," Hibari scoffed and closed his eyes. "Now don't disturb me, herbivore."

"Huh…" Ryohei pondered and sat cross legged beside Hibari, staring at the picture he ripped off the wall of a house when he was going for a jog.

"Herbivore."

"Eh?"

"Go away."

Ryohei frowned. "Why do I have to go away?"

Hibari mirrored Ryohei's frown and replied, "Because."

"Because WHAT?"

"Just because. Now leave, Herbivore."

"No!" Ryohei said stubbornly. "You have to give me a solid reason why first!"

_Why is he so annoying?_ Hibari asked the stars.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Hibari jumped off the roof and landed on the ground. He sighed and rubbed his neck. After fighting with that loud mouth herbivore late into the night, and then <em>finally<em> being able to make him go downstairs, Hibari had about five hours of sleep. He sighed when he saw that Ryohei was running towards him from his early jog.

Before Ryohei could shout anything, Hibari said, "We have to get someone to give the crates we have to the Gatherer."

Ryohei gave him a confused look. "Why can't we just carry them around!"

Hibari didn't bother to reply, since it was obvious. _I can't fight holding two boxes, _he thought. The prefect went back into the motel to get two boxes as Ryohei got the other two. Hibari noticed the look the clerk gave him and Ryohei when they walked out. It clearly said, "I think I recognise the boy on the wanted posters…"

It was a good thing that they were already headed out.

"_Good sirs!"_ Someone called out and waved at them from a cart some few yards away. The cart was pulled by two strong horses that were currently resting. The man was Camillo, Rosalia's assistant. They walked to him.

"_We have until tonight,"_ Hibari growled. _"What do you want?"_

Camillo shivered. _"I've been told to take what you have now and bring it back to the house."_

Ryohei caught the drift of it. _"OH! THANK YOU TO THE EXTREME!"_ He screamed and carefully put his load into the cart. Camillo smiled weakly and rubbed his ears.

"Hn. We will be back in a few minutes. Stay here," Hibari said over his shoulder as he headed towards the last hideout.

Camillo watched them as they left, very surprised that they didn't seem the least injured. He sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"_How can they be like that? They're like…army weapons,"_ he mumbled to himself as he sat back to watch the two raid yet another place. His face paled when he saw that there were officers approaching from the other end of the street.

_Oh my god. I hope those two boys hurry up. I don't want to be caught by them again…hurry up!_ He thought in his head. He heard Ryohei's loud shouting and the screams of the men who Hibari dealt with. He winced each time and wished that he was anywhere but there. _I'm going to have nightmares for the rest of my life. _

Thankfully, Hibari and Ryohei came out with Ryohei carrying the red and yellow crate. Camillo almost whooped with joy that they were out so quick. _"Hurry up!"_ He mouthed to them, earning himself a glare from Hibari who leapt into the cart as Ryohei put the crate down.

"_You hurry up."_

Camillo restrained a squeak and had the horses moving down another road to avoid the police.

"_YOSH! _WE'RE FINALLY DONE!"

Camillo couldn't agree more. _I think I'll ask Rosalia if I could take a break…I need one._

* * *

><p>"<em>Alright. I'll accept them,"<em> Rosalia replaced the cover of the last crate she opened. _"Follow me."_

Ryohei silently cheered at their success as he and Hibari followed Rosalia to the back of the warehouse. She was waiting beside a table that was cleared of all but one thing—the Travel Bomb.

It looked just as it did in the picture. It was precise to the last detail. The bomb was cushioned in a box with red fabric. Hibari narrowed his eyes as this reminded him of the Inheritance Ceremony. He shoved the memory aside as he looked at this one.

"_It doesn't look like an EXTREME bomb at all!"_

"_It may not look like one,"_ Rosalia said, _"but it is one. I will let Talbot explain the details of it if he wishes to. Be very careful when you carry it. If it is shaken up it may be activated and there will be minutes before it causes an explosion. If it is under too much pressure, the glass will shatter, rendering the bomb useless—of course, the same goes for dropping it."_

Hibari snorted. _"I'm not an idiot."_

"_Good. I don't give such valuables to idiots. Here." _Rosalia carefully handed the bomb over to Hibari's waiting hands, although he didn't look too excited about needing to hold something.

Then they heard a ruckus coming from outside. Rosalia's head snapped to the barred door, which was threatened to come off its hinges.

"_It must be the police,"_ Rosalia said anxiously. She pointed to another door which was the back exit. _"Go!"_

"Oi, Hibari, let's go!" Ryohei shouted when Hibari looked reluctant to leave when there was a fight going on right in front of him. The door fell open and the police spotted him and Ryohei.

Hibird chirped and pecked Hibari on the ear. Hibari twitched.

"How dare you bite your own master?"

"_Peeeep!" _Hibird peeped loudly. Hibari grumbled and followed his bird out.

"This wasn't worth my time…all the opponents were herbivores…"

"Hibari! We have to get away TO THE EXTREME!"

Hibari glared at Ryohei and then really looked at him. He smirked. "You'll do. Herbivore. Fight me."

"YOSH! YOU'VE GOT YOURSELF A CHALLENGE, HIBARI! BUT LET'S HAVE AN _EXTREME_ ESCAPE FIRST!"

Behind them, Rosalia raised her hand to guard herself against a gun, which was shot at her. She didn't avoid it, but allowed them to go through her. The officer thought her to be dead, but she plucked out one of her needles and threw it at him to render him unconscious. The last thing the officer saw was the woman's body, which was whole, except for the tears on her clothing. It was as if she wasn't just shot by a round of bullets…

* * *

><p>Tsuna yawned as he got up. Blinking, he noticed that the sun was just coming up. He groaned and flopped back onto his bed of the moving train.<p>

"Okay, seriously. That's it. Reborn definitely put something in that bottled water he gave me… He spiked it! Reborn…what the heck! I'm going to get you when I see you again," Tsuna muttered. Then he paused. "Why am I…did I just…" he gulped, "t-threaten…Reborn? Better yet, WHY AM I TALKING TO MYSELF!"

Tsuna rubbed his head and got out of bed since he had a sinking feeling that he wouldn't be able to get any more sleep.

Opening his door, he noted that no one else was awake. He walked to the opposite room and opened the door quietly. This was Lambo's room, and there was no way Lambo would be quiet unless he was asleep. But, the Lightning Guardian was not in his room. Tsuna closed the door and frowned in confusion. Where was Lambo?

He then went to check on his Mist Guardian but his hand paused on the handle. For some reason, he blushed madly and slowly walked away.

_I…haven't been in a girl's room before…other than Kaa-san's and Haru's in the future… _he gulped and decided to trust his intuition when it told him that Chrome was in her room. _But if I'm going by intuition…why do I have a bad feeling that Lambo's up to no good? HIIE!_

With that, Tsuna rubbed his head and paced to think of where Lambo could be. This was when he heard a surprise scream coming from somewhere outside their VIP compartment of the train. He ran to open the door and went through the connected area of the compartments. He saw that the woman who usually came to see if they would like to order anything was staring at something covered with cake.

"Lambo!" Tsuna ran to stand beside the woman and tried to grab Lambo from the top shelf. He jumped and tried to get him again. "Lambo! What are you doing up there? And why are you covered with cake?"

"NYAHAHAH! That's because Lambo-sama was hungry! This cake is good! Tsuna, wanna try?" Lambo asked innocently as he held a handful of mushed cake out to Tsuna with an evil grin on his face.

"N-No—"_splat! _Lambo threw the cake with precise aim from practice with throwing things at Gokudera. "Gha!" Tsuna wiped the cream from his face and made another grab for Lambo. This time he caught his arm and pulled the little misfit down.

He turned to the woman with Lambo firmly in his arms. _"Sorry! We're very sorry!" _He darted away with Lambo still whining.

"You should know better than to steal food, Lambo!"

"But I was hungry and Tsuna was still sleeping like a pig," Lambo pouted and imitated a pig's oink. Tsuna sighed. _Why was he up so early in the first place?_

"And now we have to get cleaned up…Oh, Chrome!" He stopped when he saw that Chrome was sitting on her usual couch. She looked at Tsuna when he called her name.

"Good morning, Boss."

"Morning!"

"Why are you and the cow boy covered with cake?" She asked with a tilt of her head. Tsuna sighed.

"You know…Lambo tried to eat the cake the cook prepared for someone else and ended up making a big mess of it…" He sweatdropped as he gave the less detailed version. The truth was, as far as he could tell, the entire kitchen looked like it was visited by a hungry baby monster.

Chrome nodded and turned back to the window. Tsuna scratched his head with his hand that wasn't covered with cream. It was too quiet here, with Ryohei and the rest of them gone. And they were supposed to be arriving at their destination later tonight. It unsettled Tsuna to think of who the Gatherer was.

"Tsuna, I'm still hungry!"

"Gha! Right, I forgot! We have to get you cleaned up first!"

"But Tsuna! I want to eat!"

"Later! You'll turn into a fat pig at this rate!" He dashed to the wash basin in the washroom and gave Lambo a quick bath.

The rest of the day wore on as Tsuna and Chrome played with Lambo to keep the baby amused and them from dying of boredom.

Something rather interesting happened while they were eating an early supper.

Right in the middle of the table, something appeared out of thin air, scaring Tsuna to death: a pair of guns and a staff.

"Hie! What the heck is this! Mukuro! It must be his doing! What is this?"

He dropped his fork and picked up the guns. They were heavy and loaded. He felt a trace of Dying Will Flames in them, which made him curious. He put them down slowly and picked up the staff with two hands. He ran a hand over the handle and looked at the tips. He could feel that this too was coated with Dying Will Flames before.

"I wonder what happened to the flames…" Tsuna murmured.

"Maybe Mukuro-sama stole them," Chrome whispered, almost to herself. Tsuna looked up in surprise.

"Stole them? What do you mean?"

_Oops._ Chrome shook her head and continued eating. She almost said too much about Mukuro's new secret ability.

Tsuna pondered over this for a few more minutes. Then he sighed and continued eating.

"Food fiiight!"

"GUAAAA-RPP!" Tsuna toppled out of his chair when Lambo launched himself onto Tsuna with a dish of sauce in his hands—now, on Tsuna's face.

* * *

><p>Later, Reborn paid them a visit through the device he gave Tsuna.<p>

"Reborn! What did you put in that drink you gave me!" Tsuna asked after he recovered from the shock of Reborn appearing out of mid air.

"_What drink?"_

"What! You have me a drink before we left and now you're telling me that you forgot all about it!"

Reborn's reply was a simple shrug. Tsuna gave up and sighed.

"Oh! How is everyone at the Vongola Mansion?"

Reborn smirked at this. _"It's in an uproar."_

"EH?"

Chrome frowned in worry as Lambo tried to have a fight with Tsuna. "Ow! Lambo, stop!"

"Is someone attacking them?" Chrome asked timidly.

Reborn considered the question before answering. By now, Tsuna was able to control Lambo and calm him down by sticking a lollipop into his mouth.

"_Yes, I suppose that they are being attacked."_

Tsuna's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You _suppose?_ What…who is attacking them exactly?"

Reborn smirked again. _"A woman who does by the name of Jules. She is Alaude's sister."_

Tsuna's eyes widened at this new information. "Alaude had a SISTER?"

"_You should have known that. She was mentioned at least once in Vongola's History. I made you read it two times. I guess that's not enough. Remind me to make it two hundred when we return to the future."_

_Like heck I will!_ Tsuna gawked at his tutor's ridiculous plan.

"A-Anyways, back to the topic, what's wrong with her? Why are you guys treating it as though she's the enemy?"

"_You'll see when you get back,"_ Reborn tilted his hat to hide his smirk. Tsuna frowned in confusion.

"That's kind of…ominous…Reborn…a-and what did you put in my drink? I seem to be acting slightly different!"

"_How so? You don't seem so different,"_ Reborn said with too much innocence in his voice.

"For one thing, I'm waking up on time!"

"_Which is due to my extraordinary tutoring skills."_

Tsuna sweatdropped.

"I-I'm more hyper! I didn't even try to refuse Yamamoto when he urged me to dance some kind of cheering song with him!"

"_Well that's all part of being a family, isn't it?"_ Reborn inquires. "_You should play around with them more so of course you would join in on some fun."_

"That's not the point!"

"TSUNA'S TOO LOUD!" Lambo complained and smacked the half finished lollipop onto Tsuna's face. It stuck.

"Ew, Lambo!"

"_Yes, you really do seem to be too loud, Tsuna,"_ Reborn said. _"You've even attracted some unwanted attention on my side of the line."_

"Eh?"

"_Reborn? What are you doing?"_ A cautious voice asked from a distance.

"_Oh, nothing. I'm just talking to a dear student of mine." _

Chrome saw that Tsuna had a panicked expression on his face as Reborn told this to Lampo.

"Boss, why do you look so…frightened?"

"This is_ not_ good," Tsuna had panic in his eyes as he turned to Chrome. "Is Lampo sees us here, we're doomed! Lampo's going to faint or something, thinking that we're a ghost…holograms don't exist back then!"

Chrome blinked her owl-like eye. She had her own thoughts on the matter but decided to keep quiet, to see how things will run.

* * *

><p>"But…I thought your only pupil was that kid with the bushy brown hair," Lampo said as he opened the door fully. <em>And there isn't anyone in here. Has the man gone crazy?"<em> He sauntered into the room and looked into every corner. There was no one in here. "Anyways, Vongola says to tell you that we will be dining with Jules tonight. _All_ of us."

Reborn nodded. "Very well."

Lampo turned to leave when he heard something that should not even be possible.

"_TSUNA! I NEED FOOD! AND YOU STOLE MY CANDY!"_

"_Eh? I did no such thing!"_

Lampo tensed and slowly, like a robot, twitched and turned so that he was facing Reborn.

"What was that?"

"My student and his idiotic Guardian arguing over candy," Reborn replied easily.

"…An illusion?" Lampo stepped in behind Reborn.

"No," Reborn said the same time the image of Tsuna screamed, _"YES!"_

Deciding to believe the saner one of the two, Lampo nods and walks out slowly, still wondering at what he saw. _It didn't look like an illusion at all._

"Nufufu. Why do you look so confused?" Daemon asked when he appeared. Lampo jumped out of his skin. After calming his heart, Lampo described his encounter to Daemon although he shifted nervously around the illusionist.

Daemon gave Lampo a frown. "An illusion? Then why didn't I sense it?"

"So it…_wasn't_ an illusion? Then what was it?" Lampo demanded, sweating. He flashed back to what he saw just now. It was a flat image of Tsuna, the girl illusionist, and the annoying little brat with too much hair. They were moving and talking. Reborn seemed to be conversing with them, and they understood their speech.

"Why are you asking me?" Daemon snapped, not liking how there was something strange going on that wasn't his doing.

"What if they're ghosts? No, that can't be it. They…it looked like…a moving portrait," Lampo mused. "Magic?"

"Mm, more like a petty trick," Daemon said. Then he had a twinkle in his eyes. "Or…it is as you say, and the man has somehow caused ghosts to appear…" Daemon made the illusion worthy of a horror movie with the evil laugh that always sent chills down his back.

"F-Forget it!" Lampo waved Daemon off as sweat rolled down his face. "Y-Yeesh! I knew asking you was a bad idea! Gosh!" Lampo stuffed his hands into his pockets and huffed once more before stomping off rather quickly.

"Nufufufu!"

Reborn frowned in dissatisfaction. "It seems like he took it better than I thought he would," Reborn muttered.

"_Reborn!"_ Tsuna exclaimed.

"Hm?"

"_What happened to 'RESPECTING PRIMO'S FAMIGLIA'!"_

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, but that Lightning Guardian reminded me too much of yours—I just had to tease him a bit," Reborn said honestly.

Tsuna raises his hands in defeat. _"Ugh. Whatever…what was your point in calling?"_ Tsuna was now actually curious as to the hitman's reasons.

Reborn put his legs up to the desk in the borrowed room. "Can't I just call to see how my student is doing?"

Tsuna gave Reborn a cautious look. _"I-I guess a normal tutor would do that but…"_ Tsuna trailed on, not sure whether he would live through his next meeting with Reborn if he said what was on his mind.

"Don't forget that I heard you shout out that death threat directed to me when you just woke up today. Or all those pitiful screams those days before."

"_EEEH!"_

"Ah well, it seems like you won't be able to handle the information at this time anyways." With that, Reborn cut the connection.

* * *

><p>"Reborn! Reborn!" Tsuna shouted to the air in front of him and made a sorry attempt at catching the fading hologram. "Darn! Why is this only a one-way calling system! There's no way to contact Reborn with this bulk!"<p>

"Boss, the train is slowing," Chrome commented as she stared out the window.

"Eh? Oh. I guess we should get our stuff then." Chrome nodded and went to her room to retrieve her bag. "And Lambo!" Tsuna said scolding and crossed his arms.

"Huh?" Lambo said.

"Once we get off, could you please control yourself and not go running off? You're two years older than when you came to my house!"

Lambo had that mischievous look in his eyes as he said, "Alala, I might think about it if Tsuna bows down to Lambo-sama and becomes my subordinate."

Tsuna heaves out a huge sigh and picks Lambo up. "I won't be your subordinate, Lambo. I'm tired of that game already. How many times have we played it?" He then proceeded to putting Lambo on his shoulders since Lambo seemed to like the height and the illusion of him being above everyone. _Although I don't think it's too good for his ego,_ Tsuna thought miserably. _I can't wait until he grows so much that I can use the excuse that he's too old for that. And by then, I hope that Adult Lambo would kick in._

"NYAHAHAHA!"

Tsuna sighed. "I guess that time is very far away…"

"Eh? Did you say something, Tsuna?" Lambo shouted. Tsuna shook his head.

"No, I didn't. Ah, there's Chrome. Good timing. They're just about to stop."

"_San Cataldo! San Cataldo!" _The conductor cried out after the whistle was blown. _"San Cataldo! We have arrived at San Cataldo!"_

They stepped off the train and breathed in the night air. It was sill twilight, meaning there was still plenty of light to wander around town to get their bearings and to find a place to sleep for the night.

When Chrome noticed that her boss was just standing there, looking off into the distance, she asked him, "Boss, what are we going to do? And I think they're telling us to move…"

Tsuna came back to reality and looked behind him to meet a very annoyed looking man who was trying to get them to go on their way so that passengers can board. Tsuna offered them a quick apology before quickly exiting the station with Chrome in tow and Lambo still on his shoulders.

"_All aboard!" _The conductor's shout became fainter as they left.

"I was thinking of getting somewhere to sleep for the night first. See anything useful?"

Chrome shook her head as the eyed the place.

"Tsuna I'm tired!" Lambo complained. Tsuna grunted and helped Lambo go get down, so that Tsuna could hold him properly.

"Then go to sleep…" _PLEASE,_ Tsuna added silently in his head. Lambo slowly dozed off, while Tsuna was careful so the kid wasn't directly in the wind.

After wandering around for another fifteen minutes, the two teenagers decided that they weren't getting anywhere.

"Should we ask someone?" Chrome asked.

"I guess we have no choice." Tsuna decided to walk over to a man who was having a late supper at a restaurant.

"_Excuse me…"_ Tsuna began. The man looked up at them with questioning eyes.

"_Yes?"_

"_Do you know where we could stay for the night? A hotel or something?"_

The man pointed to the direction behind him and mumbled the name of the inn at the end of the street.

When they arrived, the first thing they noticed was that it was more like a bar. People were laughing and drinking, and gambling.

"_Is there anything I could help the two of you with?" _A waitress asked them politely.

"_Eh,"_ Tsuna stuttered. _"Two rooms…?"_

"_Very well then,"_ the waitress said. She gestured to the front desk and continued, _"Please wait there as I prepare the rooms for you."_

"_Thanks,"_ Tsuna replied. Once she left them, they turned to look around. One corner, the one which had the biggest crowd, was the big table gambling playing some kind of card game. At the centre of attention was a man with a big smile.

"_Come on! Let's see what it is!"_

"_Nah, I don't think so," _the man said laughing. _"I'm afraid that if I do that I would lose all the money I earned this hour!"_

"Boss," Chrome murmured quietly. "He looks…familiar."

Tsuna let out a questioning grunt. "Does he?"

"Mn."

Tsuna cocked his head and looked closer at the man who just won the round. "Looks like…" Tsuna paused and shook his head. "I don't want to believe it."

"_Excuse me." _The waitress was back. _"The rooms are ready. Please follow me."_

"_Oh, right," _Tsuna said and hurried to follow.

Lambo awoke just as they entered the room. It was getting very dark but Lambo could still see.

"Lambo-sama wants his own bed!" Lambo complained.

"No, you're so small you don't need your own bed!" Tsuna whispered. "It costs more!"

"Nnn! Why are you so stingy, TSUNA!"

Lambo struggled to get out of Tsuna's arms. Chrome thanked the waitress as she left them, after pointing out that Tsuna's room as next to Chrome's.

"I won't mind sharing a bed with the cow boy," she said. Tsuna shook his head dramatically.

"T-That's fine! Lambo, you're sleeping with me!"

Lambo whined and looked like he wanted to complain.

"I'll play with you all you want after we get back to Vongola Mansion, alright?" Tsuna said quickly. _Oh, no…tell me I didn't just promise that…_ but it was too late to take back his words, as Lambo had already caught hold of them and was unwilling to let them go.

"A promise is a promise! No going back, Tsuna!"

Tsuna could feel the exhaustion already. "Hai, hai…"

* * *

><p>"<em>OOF!"<em> Tsuna grunted in the middle of the night. He rubbed his side as Lambo twitched and sent him another powerful kick. _This_ was why he didn't want Lambo asleep beside Chrome. The poor girl would become bruised like a rainbow by morning. Tsuna rolled over and tried to pin Lambo's limbs to the mattress but as he fell asleep, he loosened his grip…

"Ite!" _Maybe I should have put Lambo in some kind of basket. He'd definitely fit._

* * *

><p>It was a peaceful morning when Chrome woke up. The birds were chirping and a warm breeze blew though her window. She got dressed quietly and wondered if her boss was awake yet.<p>

She heard muffled shouts coming from the room next door just as the thought entered her mind.

_I wonder what has Boss so loud in the morning. _She left her room to knock on Tsuna's door.

It took him some time to reach it, but when he did, she saw that his face was every colour of the rainbow.

"Oh. Morning, Chrome!"

"Good morning, Boss…" She bowed slightly and asked, "Boss, why do you look so purple?"

"Lambo's fault," he said bluntly, as though it explained everything.

"Not!" Came a voice from within.

Tsuna sighed and shook his head. He muttered to Chrome, "He kicks a lot when he's asleep. Anyways! Let's go downstairs!" Tsuna beamed, as though he wasn't just miserable about being beaten up by a seven year old.

"Hai…"

As they ate dinner at one of the tables, they spotted the man they saw last night. He was dressed in a loose shirt and brown breeches. One elbow was on the table with his chin resting on the palm. His other hand was stirring the soup, which was his breakfast. He had brownish black tufts of short, soft hair. His blue eyes looked dreamy.

"His face reminds me of Byakuran," Tsuna whispered.

Chrome nodded in agreement although she was slightly surprised that her boss was so willing to talk. Usually if it were just them and Lambo, he would be too uncomfortable to have a conversation.

As they finished their breakfast, the cook brought out a plate of cream puffs to bring to the man, who smiled his thanks. Tsuna shuddered and thought, _There's no way we are actually meeting someone who has some kind of relation to Byakuran…in Italy…that's too crazy!_

"Tsuna, those look good," Lambo said in a conversational tone. He was pointing to the cream puffs on the man's table.

"Uh…yeah."

"GYAPPI! I'm gonna ask him if I can take some!" With that, Lambo jumped onto their table, making the bowls and cups clatter. He then made his way over people's heads to reach the cream puffs that caught his eyes.

"Lambo!" Tsuna stood up quickly and ran after him. By the time he and Chrome reached the table, Lambo was helping himself to his second serving. Tsuna glanced at the man. He had an amused smile on his face as he watched Lambo eat his snack. In fact, he was _encouraging_ Lambo to take all he wanted.

Tsuna slowly pulled at Lambo's waist to pick him up.

"_Sorry…"_

"_Ah, it's no problem," _the man said cheerfully. _"I can always ask the cook to make me more."_

_Should I ask if he's the Gatherer?_ Tsuna asked himself. He thought about it for a millisecond and then shrugged. _"Excuse me, are you the Gatherer?"_

The man stiffened in surprise at the question. He looked over the three people now surrounding his table. _"Who wants to know?"_

"_Talbot sent us to look for you,"_ Tsuna said. _"I'm Tsuna, and this is Chrome." _He thought that there would be no harm in telling this man, since he was not Byakuran and he did not look evil at all. Plus, Tsuna's intuition did not scream any warnings, so he thought it was safe to tell him.

"_Yes, I am the Gatherer, Nico .I can't say whether it's nice to meet you or not yet."_ Nico's face was now neutral when he knew that they were here for business.

"I'M LAMBO!" Lambo introduced himself with a mouthful of cream puffs still in his mouth.

"Lambo ew! Swallow before you talk!"

"_Now what is it that dear Talbot wants from me?"_ Nico asked with a spark in his eyes.

"_We need the…"_ Tsuna searched his memory for the words. _"We need the Virtual Photon Mirrors."_

Nico raised an eyebrow. _"The mirrors, hm~…that's interesting."_

"_Will you…help us?"_

"_Well now,"_ Nico leaned back on his chair with a sigh. _"That depends."_

Tsuna wasn't sure whether he liked the sound of this. _"On what?"_

"_On what card you pick!" _Nico said in a 'surpise!' tone of voice. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a deck of cards. Most likely, the deck that was used to be played last night.

* * *

><p>And there you have it! It's the next chapter! :D I uploaded this faster than I expected! It's not as long, but I'll be updating more often.<p>

**For more information on how the Travel Bomb works, visit my blog,** longlivemarshmallows . blogspot . ca


	25. Reunion

**Chapter Twenty Five**

Tsuna barely batted an eyelash before asking, _"What's the deal?" _

The four of them were now sitting comfortably around the table with Lambo munching on the grape candy he found in his hair.

Nico smiled. _"If you chose a card that ends up being lower than mine, we _have_ no deal. If you chose a card that's worth more than mine, then we have a deal, and we will move onto what task you will need to complete. Mind you, my tasks are more complicated than my fellow Gatherers in the other towns."_

Tsuna looked to Chrome and Lambo. Lambo was licking the plate clean and Chrome nodded in encouragement to Tsuna. He nodded to her, then to Nico.

"_Deal."_

"_Great! We'll start now!"_ Nico shuffled the cards quickly and very professionally. Then he smoothed them out on the table.

_This reminds me of Choice, when we had to chose cards,_ Tsuna sweated as his hand slowly inched on the table towards the cards. He closed his eyes and let his hands and mind chose the card.

The entire table, including Lambo, was quiet as he flipped the card over. It was a king. Tsuna grinned widely and Chrome sighed in relief. There were only four cards that could beat a king and the possibility of choosing one of the four cards wasn't very high.

Nico chose a card and it ended up being an Ace. Their spirits fell. _"You have two more tries."_

"Can I pick the next one?" Lambo pleaded with puppy eyes.

Tsuna hesitated and shook his head. He didn't want Lambo to go all crazy and pick out ten cards at once. Chrome went instead.

She picked up a Jack. Nico picked up a King. Their heads drooped.

Nico chuckled. _"It looks like you only have one chance left. You might as well give in. You kids have no luck at all."_

"_TSUNAAA!"_ Lambo whined loudly. "I want to pick one!"

Before anyone could think to stop him, the baby snatched a card out of the slightly scrambled cards.

An Ace.

Nico's grin faltered. He slowly pulled a card out, and flipped it over to reveal a King.

Tsuna's jaw dropped in disbelief. He stared at the cards and at Lambo.

"YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" He screamed and danced around with Lambo on the spot.

"_Oh my,"_ Nico remarked, _"He's pretty happy. Does he always act like this?"_

Chrome gave the slightest shake of her head. _Boss seems very hyper._

Nico clapped his hands three times. _"Alright. Now that this is settled, it means that you will be able to know what your task is! Sit, sit."_

They sat and paid careful attention to what Nico had to say. The older man leaned in close and glared at them all.

Frozen.

That's how they felt under Nico's cold stare. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't move.

Tsuna's nerves were poorly shaken. His legs wouldn't obey him; they felt like jelly. His mind was clouded with fear.

_T-This man's aura and glare...could rival Reborn's…_

The tenth Vongola boss paused and rethought that. If he was subconsciously admitting that Nico's glare rivals Reborn's, then that means Tsuna can live through this. After all, nothing is worse than Reborn, whether it's torture-wise, or intimidation. He took in a deep breath.

_I can do this…I've lived through middle school with Reborn under my roof…I can do this._ He took in a deep breath and let it out. He stared back. Chrome was sitting straighter with a determined look in her eyes. Lambo did his best to look haughty for being the person to pick the Ace. Tsuna could tell that he was shaking, but he wasn't hiding. No one was backing out.

Nico's eyes suddenly filled with laughter as he smiled. _"I was just testing you. If you were afraid of my stare, you would surely not stand a chance to stand up against what I'm about to throw at you."_

Tsuna let out a shaky laugh.

"_And that's enough of me toying with you. Come. I will explain as we walk."_ Nico stood and led the way to the back of the inn. He called out to the clerk, _"I'll be in the backyard if anything happens!"_

"_Okay, Boss!"_

"_Boss?" _Tsuna said incredulously. Nico nodded and explained that he owned the inn and it acted as his little science lab whenever he needed it.

"_Now. I don't believe in giving anyone the Virtual Photon Mirrors if they have no control over others. Control is the basic survival skill in my line of work." _They reached the back door and Nico pushed open the fancy double doors. The doors were made out of very sturdy oak trees and almost impenetrable. _"Otherwise," _Nico half turned to them with a smirk, _"you will most likely be eaten by your own research project."_

"**_ROOOOAAAAAAAAAAAR!_**_"_

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH__!"_ Tsuna, Chrome, and Lambo screamed as the doors slammed shut behind them. Nico simply smiled as he put the bolts in place.

"_Yoo-hoo~"_ He shouted to the animal that looked big and violent enough to be considered a monster. It purred and sat down on its haunches, thumping its tails against the earth.

"_W-W-What is that!" _

"_It's my pet~!"_

"_Your PET—!" _Tsuna screamed when the pet looked at him. It had large purple eyes and yellowing teeth. It was as big as a house and looked just as heavy. Its overall shape could be described as a mix between a rat and a dog. Its fur was a dirty, pale green colour. It had four legs, all with big sharp black claws.

"_**RAAAAAAAAAWWRRRRRRR!"**_

"_HIIE!" _Tsuna jumped a metre into the air with Chrome and Lambo accompanying him.

"_Your job is to make Woofie submit to you~! There is no time limit. Just do it before you become Woofie's breakfast instead, hm~?"_

"_GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"_ The three of them ran when the monster dubbed Woofie chased after them with a mean, hungry look in his eyes.

"_**ROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAR**_**!"**

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"_

"TSUNA YOU HAVE TO SAVE LAMBO-SAMAAA!" Lambo cried enough tears to fill a river.

"_HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SAVE YOU WHEN I'M RUNNING FOR MY LIF—!"_

"_Don't forget control!"_ Nico reminded from the doorway.

"_WHY ISN'T IT CHASING YOU?"_ Tsuna screamed in protest.

Nico said, _"Because I already found the way to control Woofie. Plus, Woofie is my research! Also, he doesn't like being called an 'it'—that makes him embarrassed."_

_Embarrassed my foot!_ Tsuna thought as he turned back around. Instead of looking flushed, Woofie seemed to be even more fired up to chase after them. It was a miracle that they were still ahead. But Woofie was quickly closing the gap.

"I think we're going to have to fight him," Tsuna groaned and pulled out his gloves. Chrome nodded and took out her trident. Lambo continued to cry, but sparks were forming out of panic.

"Lambo, I want you to hold it in!" Tsuna said anxiously. "You have to!"

"Must…stay …calm…"

Tsuna gulped.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAA! LAMBO-SAN CAN'T TAKE IT! I'M TOO SCARED! WHAAAA! MAMA!"

"Ah! Lambo stop moving! No! Don't throw that! Okay, maybe that can do—NO, NOT AT ME!" Lambo was offering Tsuna and Chrome a grenade. "TOSS IT BEHIND YOU!"

_BOOM!_

Through the smoke, they saw Woofie swat at the smoke and continued onwards.

"Oh gosh!" Tsuna exclaimed. "Control, control, control, control! How do you control this thing! You'd have to beat it right?"

"Hai," Chrome said.

"_**ROOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAR**__**!" **_Woofie slammed a paw down to the ground, just inches from where the teens were moments ago.

"Stop crying, Lambo—we can try to hide from it if we're quiet."

Lambo sniffed and looked up into orange eyes. "O-okay…WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! It's right behind us! _TSUNA!"_

"Boss, I can hide us in that corner under an illusion!"

Tsuna nodded and handed Lambo over to her. They continued to run at top speed as Tsuna came to a complete halt.

Nico leaned forward when he saw Tsuna's eyes and the flame on his forehead. The boy lit up his gloves with Dying Will Flames and flew right at Woofie.

Tsuna hovered in front of Woofie's face, thinking over his situation. He decided to see how the animal would react, and then try to examine the entire body to find a weak point.

Woofie did not like flies flying around his face. He swatted Tsuna out of the air with lightning speed. Tsuna slammed into the dirt and slid a good few metres before coming to a stop.

"Ugh…" He sat up and looked at Woofie. "How did he move so fast?" Wincing as he touched a small gash on his arm, Tsuna flew back into the air, this time looking closer at Woofie's legs. _They look well muscled with no fat at all. They don't move much, but when they do—_He dodged a kick and flew higher. —_when they do, they move fast._

Tsuna zoomed in like a rocket and collided into the neck of the beast and darted away. _Attacks mostly with teeth and front right paw. It's a righty? No,_ Tsuna took a closer look at Woofie and noticed that while it attacked while standing on the rear legs, it only swiped at him with the right paw. It was then that Tsuna realised that the left paw was probably injured during the small explosion Lambo caused. The left paw was limp.

_Should I tackle the legs to unbalance him or directly attack the head to make it go unconscious?_

"Boss!" He looked down and saw Chrome standing beneath him. "I can help you." Tsuna nodded.

"I was thinking of hitting it between the eyes. But it's quick and by the time I realise that it will attack me, I would be down. I need a distraction."

"I can give you one," she called up to him. She twirled her trident and slammed it into the ground so hard that it cracked. Tsuna looked at himself to see that there was a second him, standing in the exact location that he was at the moment. He nodded the okay at Chrome and both he and the illusion ducked under as if going between the legs.

Woofie's head bent down to watch faux Tsuna's movements as the real Tsuna increased his flames on the X Gloves and smacked the monster between the eyes with his legs. Woofie was stunned and looked dizzy.

Tsuna let powerful balls of his flames hit the joints of Woofie's legs. When that wasn't enough, he froze the paws to the ground although it didn't look like it would hold him down for long. Woofie flailed his front legs wildly like a human would and almost regained his balance. Before he could do that fully, Tsuna performed an X-Stream around Woofie's head and then onto his body. He stood back to watch the result.

"The final blow," he muttered and used his bracers to help him control the XX Burner.

With the voice confirming that it was ready for launching, Tsuna fired away.

The animal was engulfed in the flames for half a minute before they dispersed. Then with some crackling, the ground was upended by the falling creature locked in place with Zero Point Breakthrough.

Tsuna landed and came out of his Hyper Dying Will Mode. He looked at the animal nervously. Chrome approached him. Seconds later, the animal twitched. Tsuna and Chrome flinched.

"I thought I beat him!"

**"**_**ARRRRRRRGG****!"**_

It struggled to get up.

"Chrome! Help me keep it down!" Tsuna shouted as he ran. Chrome nodded and ran after her boss. She let out her flames and manipulated them until they were pushing Woofie back into the ground. Her aura was strong and resolved, which practically suffocated Woofie.

Lambo sported a terrified look on his face when he realised that Chrome wasn't going to leave him behind. "Let me down! I don't want to go near that thing! WHAAAAAAAAA!"

She said while running, "Boss needs us both, so we're going to help him."

"NO!" Lambo screamed and tried to get away.

Chrome summoned thick ropes that were real illusions and bound the middle of the beast. Then she casted more to secure the head and the legs. Tsuna stood on Woofie's chest in Hyper Mode. With a bit of scrambling, Chrome joined him with a reluctant Lambo.

Tsuna spoke quietly with Chrome as Woofie struggled to rise. Tsuna noticed Nico watching them intently from the corner of his eye.

"We still didn't gain control over him. Any ideas how?"

Chrome cocked her head to think. What would Mukuro do in their position? How do they tell Woofie who's boss? If this was Mukuro, he would probably try to torture the animal into submission. Or scare it enough to obey him.

"We can try to convince him…peacefully?" Chrome shivered at the thought of torturing something. Tsuna nodded his head in agreement. "I was thinking the same thing," he said and turned to the monster.

"_You're Woofie, right?"_ Tsuna said. The monster—Woofie, stopped snarling for a moment to look at Tsuna in the eyes. The eyes he saw were tender and held no malice or threats. Then the owner of those eyes smiled. _"Do you think you could obey me for a single day?"_

Woofie growled threateningly. He still remembered his master telling him to not obey anyone other than his master. There was no way he would obey this little thing.

Lambo screamed when Woofie started to struggle against his bonds again. _"Woofie, stop," _Tsuna commanded. Woofie stopped obediently. Tsuna and Chrome blinked in surprise.

"_Blink three times,"_ Tsuna said in a commanding tone again, as a test. Woofie stared at him. _"Come on now,"_ Tsuna snapped his hands impatiently when he got no response. Woofie blinked three times. Nico's eyes narrowed at the outcome. _That's not supposed to happen…_

"_You will obey me until I tell you to stop."_

Woofie stared at them. Why wasn't it working? _Maybe it's because I didn't tell him to do anything physically,_ Tsuna thought. So, he said, _"Nod your head if you understand that you have to obey me."_

Woofie nodded his head. Nico mouth turned into a deep frown and his brows furrowed in confusion.

Chrome simply stared on.

"Chrome."

Her head came up to look questioningly at her boss. He tilted his head, indicating that they were going to get off.

Once they were off, they walked to the legs. Tsuna touched it briefly before turned to his friends. "I can't unfreeze Dying Will Flames unless I have all the flames of the Sky. I think he's going to have to keep them with him forever." They heard a hint of sadness in Tsuna's voice as he pitied the monster.

"But he can still stand," Lambo argued. "That monster ran at us when he was like that!"

"Ah," Tsuna confirmed. _"Woofie, stand."_

Chrome made the bonds disappear and Woofie rolled onto all four legs obediently.

"_Follow me."_ Tsuna started walking carefully and slowly, with Woofie right behind him. They approached Nico who now had a scowl on his face.

"_Well?"_ Tsuna said when they all came to a standstill.

"_You pass,"_ he said grudgingly. _"But how did you make him obey you like that?"_ He demanded of Tsuna.

"_Woofie, obey your own master now,"_ Tsuna commanded. Woofie growled again before sitting on the ground, thumping his tail, like he was when they first came in.

"_Boy,"_ Nico growled. _"Tell me what you did." It shouldn't have been possible!_

"_I didn't do anything,"_ Tsuna said. Nico blinked a few times when he realised that the tone of the voice changed slightly. Looking into Tsuna's eyes, he saw that they were brown again. _What?_

"_Where do we get the mirrors?"_

"_Wait inside,"_ Nico said faintly as he tried to piece together what just happened. Tsuna nodded and headed in. As Chrome passed, Nico grabbed her arm. She flinched and tried to pull her arm back.

"_Girl,"_ he said, just when she decided that she should jab his arm with the trident. _"What did he do to my research pet?"_

Chrome looked confusingly at Nico. Wasn't it obvious? _"Boss commanded Woofie."_

"_I know that! But _why_ did Woofie obey him!"_

"_Because…Boss made him…obey?"_

"_What? How can a mere kid have such a voice that can make a monster obey!"_ He growled. Woofie growled, following his master's mood.

Chrome finally pried off all five fingers off her arm and slipped out the door.

"_Boss is Boss,"_ Chrome looked at Nico as if that explained everything.

Muttering to himself bitterly, Nico closed the door behind him.

"_How come you don't lock the door?"_ Tsuna asked as he and Chrome tried to keep pace with Nico's long stride.

"_It doesn't matter if anyone finds out about him since they'll be eaten before they could scream. It would be their fault for going through a door they aren't supposed to."_

Tsuna shivered. _Scary…_

Nico showed them into another room, which _didn't _have any monsters. To them, it looked like Talbot's lab back in the Vongola Mansion.

"_Wait here,"_ he said and pointed to two plush sofas in a corner. There they sat as Nico walked across the room and pulled at a hidden trap door. He disappeared into it for a few minutes before emerging with a thin box in his hands.

"_Here. You may open it to see."_ Tsuna took the box in two hands as he tried to stop his hands from shaking.

He put it on the table between the two seats and opened the already unlatched box. The box was filled with layers and layers of red velvet and other fabrics that protected the two, thin mirrors on the inside.

Nico explained to them grudgingly that the mirrors won't break as long as the box is securely locked and put away carefully. Then Nico closed the lid and did something to the box so that the locks merged into the box, as well as the crack that showed the opening. Where the opening was, a gold ribbon took its place.

Chrome carefully put it into her bag, making sure that there was nothing that could harm it as well as cushioning it more with whatever she had in there.

"_Thank you,"_ Tsuna said to Nico.

Nico huffed. _"And you're welcome, although I didn't expect you to pass my test. How on earth _did _you do it? It's as if you simply commanded it and it obeyed."_

Tsuna shrugged. _"I…don't know. He just obeyed when I told him to."_

Nico frowned as he followed them out the inn. He plastered on a friendly smile as he waved at them cheerfully from the entrance. Then he turned serious as they walked down the road. There were some changes he would have to _discuss_ with Woofie.

* * *

><p>"Aaaaaah!" Tsuna suddenly bent down and pulled at his hair. "I can't believe we did that!"<p>

Chrome giggled softly at her boss' reaction.

"We finished it in one day," she said. "What should we do now, Boss? The train will be back to take us to the Vongola Mansion the day after tomorrow."

Tsuna stood and scratched his head. "We should stay indoors. The less time we stay outside, the less we will affect the past, no matter how small." Time traveling has taught them all that everything they did could affect the future.

"I DON'T WANT TO STAY THERE ANYMORE!" Lambo started crying again. "THAT BIG BAD MONSTER WAS SCARY!"

"You said you weren't scared," Tsuna argued though he couldn't help but agree that he was never going back to that inn ever again.

"I'm not!"

"You were…"

"N-N-Not!" Lambo tried to stop himself from giggling when Tsuna tickled him.

They ended up staying at another inn after making sure that they didn't have any crazy people who liked keeping deformed animals as pets.

Although they thought that they should stay inside for two days, Lambo couldn't stand it after the first night.

"Lambo-san wants to play outside!"

"Nnn…Later," Tsuna mumbled into his pillow and turned over. "ARRG!" He groaned when Lambo jumped onto his stomach.

"Lambo-san wants to go outside now!"

"Fine! Fine! Just get off me!" Tsuna dozed as he waited for Lambo's weight to get off his chest.

"On second thought, I don't want to go out," Lambo said in a bored tone.

"EH! You woke me up for nothing!"

"NYAHAHA! I want breakfast now! Breakfast! Breakfast!"

"Ite! Ite! Ite!" Tsuna yelped each time Lambo bounced. "You're killing me here you know!"

"NYA! NYA! NYAA! Lambo-san wants breakfast! Dame-Tsunaa! Give me breakfast!"

"I don't have your darn breakfast!" Tsuna rolled off the bed with a loud thump.

"Boss…?" Chrome poked her head into the room. "Someone brought up breakfast."

Lambo cheered and got off Tsuna only to kick him in the face with his heels before running out the door. Tsuna groaned again as he stumbled out the door. He winced as he touched the bruise forming on his cheek.

"Thanks, Chrome! Lambo was just about to kill me…"

Chrome sweatdropped and chose not to comment.

Later that day, Tsuna gave in to Lambo's nagging and took him outside. They walked around the park and played a short game of tag before Lambo grew tired. Tsuna brought them back to their rooms and had their dinner brought up.

Their next day went similarly like that. On the day they were to leave, they walked to the train station and waited for their train to arrive. When it did, they showed them their return tickets and had the VIP compartment again.

* * *

><p>Hibari and Ryohei stood when their train came.<p>

"Oi, do you think we will meet Sawada and the others?"

Hibari glared at Ryohei and itched for his tonfas.

"_Ticket please,"_ the lady said curtly. Hibari showed her their tickets and clambered aboard. Ryohei did _not_ stop talking at all.

"It will be _extreme _if Sawada was there! Then I can tell him all about our _extreme_ matches!"

Hibari grunted. "Do what you like. Just leave me out of it." He slammed the compartment door open and walked in. He saw that Tsuna and Chrome were both staring at him. Tsuna was grinning while Chrome gave them a quiet greeting.

"Hibari-san! Onii-san! I just knew that you two would come aboard! How was it?"

"Hn."

"Hibari-san!" Tsuna called as the prefect made his way to the top of the train to relax. "Now, what could have him in such a rush? He didn't even bite me to death," Tsuna wondered aloud.

"_SAWADA! _OUR MATCHES WERE TO THE _EXTREME!_ FIRST WE…"

Tsuna's mouth twitched into a smile as he listened to Ryohei encounter their adventures. _No wonder Hibari escaped so quickly. Onii-san's so hyped up about it._

Tsuna let out his own exclamations and laughing fits as the story went on. Soon they were well into the night, and finally, Ryohei finished their story as dinner came around.

"We should leave some aside for Hibari-san."

"SAWADA!"

Tsuna winced. He made gestures with both hands pushing downwards. "O-Onii-san, that's very loud…"

"Oh. Right. Sorry. Anyways! I'll go and give Hibari his food! Everyone needs the energy!"

"Right. Okay. You do that." _I don't want to be bitten to death._

"Sawada!"

"Hai…?" Tsuna looked at Ryohei cautiously, as the teen had his hands punching the air in front of him.

"We have to do some training in the morning! We can't go slacking off!"

Tsuna blinked. If Reborn found out that he was slowing down on their runs, he was in for it. Tsuna nodded reluctantly. "You got yourself a deal, Onii-san."

* * *

><p>For the next few days, Ryohei pulled Tsuna with him through his hardcore training regiment, as much that was allowed in the tight confinement of the train. Ryohei made them run on the roof of the train, with the occasional jump between the gaps, with a furious Hibari chasing them. When they came to a dead end, it was usually Hibari who beat them both senseless or the two of them trying to fight back.<p>

_So much for this being a vacation break,_ Tsuna thought grimly.

"Sawada! Pick up the pace! Hup! One, two, the, four! One, two three four!"

Like the previous times, Hibari sparred with them for a while until breakfast was made. Only this time, when Hibari was about to go back to his nap above their compartment, Tsuna asked him to join them for breakfast.

"That's an _extremely_ good idea," Ryohei cheered. "Hibari, let's go!"

Hibari glared. "No."

"Pleaaase? Hibari-san, we've fought with you without complaint! At least come down today!"

Hibari narrowed his eyes. "Why today of all days? No. I won't go."

Tsuna sagged. _Looks like Hibari noticed that we're arriving at Salemi, the town where Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro are in._

"I'm not taking no as an answer, Hibari!" Ryohei roared and went at Hibari, who gladly accepted this fight. They were quickly making their way to their compartment, and Tsuna had to run to follow. Twice he almost slipped to his doom but righted himself.

Hibari evaded a punch and jumped to the next compartment.

"Come on, Hibari-san! Look—even Hibird wants to go in!" Tsuna jumped up and down as he pointed to the fluffy yellow bird that was doing his best to hover in front of the door.

Hibari glared at the traitorous bird before grunting. "Fine."

Tsuna grinned and jumped down with the other two to enter the train.

Ryohei and Tsuna exchanged high-fives since they finally convinced Hibari to go in to have breakfast with them.

The hot dishes were already laid out on the table with Chrome and Lambo sitting patiently for them. Tsuna cocked his head at this odd sight.

"Lambo, you finally grew patient!"

"L-Lambo-san is very impatient!" Lambo glanced at Hibari fearfully and gulped. He quieted down again.

Tsuna hid a chuckle. There was once when Lambo dared to bother Hibari, and was now very weary and quiet when Hibari was in the same room.

Ryohei sat at the edge with Chrome across from him. Beside her was Lambo. Tsuna sat beside Ryohei's right. And on the far _far_ right, the other side of the table was Hibari.

When breakfast was over, Hibari dozed off on a couch and threatened anyone who might wake him up. Tsuna also yawned and took over the second plush seat. Lambo also decided at that time to fall asleep as well. With nothing better to do, Chrome wandered to the bookshelf to see if there was anything interesting to read. Ryohei went on his arms and legs to do push ups until he deemed it to be _extreme._

The compartment was peacefully quiet as the scenery flew by. This lasted for another hour, before Lambo awoke from his nap. He nudged Tsuna, who rubbed his eyes. He looked around the room and saw Hibari sleeping just a few metres away from him.

_HIEEE! _Tsuna screamed in his head and pushed back. He would have fallen if the chair wasn't nailed to the floor. _What is Hibari-san doing in here? Oh, right. Onii-san and I made him come—what! I did what! Oh my god, Hibari-san is going to bite me to death if he is woken up! _

Tsuna suddenly had a flashback of Woofie, the monster Nico kept for his experiments. His complexion paled immensely. _HIIIIIIIIEEE! WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT! Oh dear god, I'm so scared! Hang on. Why am I only reacting this way now?_ Tsuna wondered to himself. He felt surprisingly himself again. Normal. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. Whatever Reborn put in the drink must be wearing off. _ABOUT TIME! It's been almost a week! Or… what…what day is it?_ Tsuna looked around, ignoring Lambo's pull at his sleeve, for a calendar of some sort. He couldn't find one.

Finally, he looked down to Lambo. Lambo was dancing on his tiptoes, with his eyes as wide as saucers. Tsuna's own eyes bugged out as he tried to run with Lambo to the washroom.

It was a close call, but otherwise safe.

"_Tell me sooner if you want to use the bathroom!"_ Tsuna whispered extra quiet. _"And don't you dare make a noise, or else Hibari will bite us all to death!" _He said as they returned to the main room. But, his warning came too late.

"_EXTREME! _FIVE THOUSAND PUSH UPS AND SIT UPS! SAWADA! YOU NEED TO JOIN ME!"

Tsuna smacked his forehead in despair.

"Onii-san! You woke up Hibari-san! He's going to bite us to—"

"Sawada! Come and do some push ups with me!"

"No!" Tsuna yelped and backed away. He felt daggers being thrown at his back—not literally, but close enough.

"H-Hibari-san…!"

"I'll bite you to death!" He snarled and ran at them.

"H-Hibari-san! C-Calm down!" Tsuna begged to no avail.

* * *

><p>Chrome stayed in her room until the ruckus outside was over. She slipped out and surveyed the main room. Ryohei and Tsuna were sprawled on the floor, limbs resting in odd angles. Lambo was nowhere in sight—he probably fled to his room.<p>

Hibari was still fuming in the corner. It was by anyone's guess as to why he wasn't out of the room already.

She slipped the book back onto the shelf and found that Hibari was glaring outside, ignoring her. That was probably because she didn't do anything that peeved him.

Then she walked quietly over to her boss to help him rest in a more comfortable position, and the same with Ryohei.

She waited for them to regain consciousness, which didn't take too long. She saw both their eyes flutter just after half an hour.

She put a finger to her lips, warning them both to stay quiet. They winced when they tried to move. Adding to the bruises and cuts they received from their morning bout, their injuries were on par with the ones they received during training periods with Reborn, or Lal Mirch.

The train stopped a few minutes later. Lambo came out of his room to pounce on Tsuna.

"Baka-Tsuna, are we home yet?"

Tsuna shook his head.

"But Lambo-san wants to go home now," he complained. Tsuna covered Lambo's mouth his his palm, hoping to muffle the oncoming scream. But it seemed like it wouldn't work. They heard footsteps approach. Hibari was glaring at Lambo.

"Herbivore, if you don't shut that mouth of yours I'll bite you to death."

Lambo whimpered as he tried to hold it in.

"Oi, Hibari, you shouldn't threaten a kid like that!" Ryohei stood at Lambo's defence.

If possible, Hibari glared even more.

"A-Ah, could we do this peacefully?" Tsuna asked lightly.

"No," Hibari and Ryohei answered, although Ryohei was probably a thousand times louder. Lambo finally gave in and cried and cried and cried.

Chrome looked at everyone, unsure of what was going to happen when Gokudera and Mukuro joined the fray. She could feel the other three Guardians getting closer.

"Onii-san! You can't just fight Hibari-san in here!" Tsuna exclaimed when Ryohei suggested the idea of solving the problem, man to man.

Hibari growled at Tsuna. "This is none of your business, Herbivore."

"Yes it is! You're both my friends!"

Their door slammed open to reveal Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Mukuro.

All three were momentarily shocked at the sight but quickly grew used to it.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera ran to Tsuna's side and bowed deeply. He was grinning widely. "We accomplished our mission!"

"Kufufufu. Tsunayoshi, did you get my little gift? Nagi, it's good to see you again." Chrome smiled up at her saviour and welcomed him back. "Oya, it looks like Hibari found someone else to fight with."

"Hey, Tsuna! Senpai, Hibari-san, you're both at it again!" Yamamoto laughed.

"That's good, Gokudera-kun! You three will have to tell us about it later when it gets quieter. Mukuro! That wasn't what I would call a gift! And where did you get them! What happened to the flames that the guns held? And Yamamoto, it's nice to see you again, but what happened to your arm! Are you alright?" Tsuna ran to Yamamoto and looked at his arm worriedly.

Yamamoto smiled sheepishly. "I ah, wasn't very careful and got into contact with some poison, ahaha…"

"Are you alright?" Tsuna furrowed his brows.

"Ah," Yamamoto paused and cocked his head. "No. Mukuro said that he knew the antidote, but he wouldn't tell us what it was."

"Mukuro!" Tsuna turned to his male Mist Guardian in shock. "What's the antidote? Why didn't you tell Yamamoto?"

Mukuro chuckled. "Kufufu. No need to get so worked up about it. After all, telling them about it would just make them anxious over nothing."

Hibari was starting to inch towards Mukuro, now that Ryohei was distracted by an argument he had with Gokudera. Lambo was also annoying Gokudera, which left Hibari with no one to beat up.

"What Yamamoto needs is the Dying Will Flame of the Sky."

"My flames!" Tsuna exclaimed. "Why not Sun Flames?"

Mukuro cocked an eyebrow. "It's because your flames are able to burn away the blood-sucking poison." When Tsuna still stared at him, Mukuro frowned. "How would I know? Do I look like an encyclopedia to you?"

Tsuna sweatdropped. "No…back to the point, what happens now?"

Yamamoto sat by the table and removed the bandages. The arm was looking blue and purple with a bit of green and red up to just above the elbow. Tsuna winced. Mukuro followed them, causing Hibari to do so as well. He looked at the wound with a plain expression.

"Hn. Weak herbivore."

Yamamoto laughed lightly. "Yeah. I guess I deserved this for not thinking before acting."

Mukuro interrupted him by saying, "Just burn up his arm and he'll be fine."

Tsuna yelped and jumped in his seat. "Mukuro!"

"Kufufufu! I'm joking. Can't take a joke?"

_N-Not from you,_ Tsuna gave Mukuro a sideways glance.

"Anyways…kufufu. Let's get started. You are supposed to carefully brush your flames over the wound. Of course it will hurt, since Sawada's flames produce heat. Try to control that and keep it to a minimum, kufufu. Otherwise, his arm might be burnt off."

"S-Stop scaring me, Mukuro!" Tsuna said as he slipped one of his X-Gloves on. He brought out his Hyper Mode and lit the gloves carefully. When he was ready, Tsuna held out his gloved hand, palm up. On it was the Sky Flame. Yamamoto gulped and slowly moved his arm over it.

By now, the entire gang was watching this, surrounding the table, holding their breaths.

Yamamoto felt the warmth of the flames as they brushed his skin. At first there didn't seem to be a difference. But after a few more seconds, colour returned to his face.

"It's working," he announced cheerfully. He shifted his arm so that other parts were also healed.

Tsuna let out a relieved sigh when Yamamoto's entre arm was healed.

"Nyahaha! Yamamoto's arm got burnt by Tsuna's fire!"

"You Stupid Cow! It didn't get burnt! It got healed by Juudaime's amazing flames!"

"Maa, maa! Thanks, Tsuna! You saved my life again!"

Tsuna closed his eyes and then reverted back to his normal self. "It wasn't _that_ dramatic, I hope…"

Yamamoto chuckled. "Yeah I'm exaggerating." He didn't want to let Tsuna know that he was close to losing his life.

Tsuna looked at each Guardian in the face. "So, we have everything we need to return home?"

They all—Ryohei, Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Lambo—shouted an affirmative while the others nodded or grunted.

Tsuna smiled again and went off to day dream about what the first thing he'd do once returning.

* * *

><p>Well there you have it! The next chapter's going to focus on Primo's family! How are they faring with their troublesome guest? Hmm~<p> 


	26. Rank A Mission for G

Whooppiee! I have a cover for this fanfic! Finally! :D**  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty Six<strong>

"G! There you are."

"Giotto? Were you looking for me?" G was in his office, lounging on the couch. Giotto walked in and closed the doors.

"Don't act all innocent now, my beloved friend. I have a job for you."

G gave Giotto a suspicious look the moment those words left his boss' mouth. "What do you mean by 'acting all innocent'?"

"You snuck off, leaving just Lampo and I to welcome Jules into our home. I wouldn't have had to go after her if only _you_ were present instead. But that's in the past." Giotto waved a hand dismissively. "Now, back to the topic—I have a job for you—a mission that you must not fail."

Giotto had such a serious expression on his face that it was hard for G to believe that he was joking. So, he removed his feet from the table like how a good subordinate would and waited for Giotto to continue.

"Well? Aren't you going to tell me?"

Giotto nodded slowly, still staring at his Storm Guardian. G's eyes narrowed a second time.

"Hold on a moment. There is no way you would allow me to leave the mansion _now_ of all times. What do you have under that sleeve of yours?"

"Nothing much, G," Giotto said and tapped his chin with a finger while crossing one leg over the other.

"_Riight," _G said.

"Jules wants to tour the _entire _mansion."

G snapped back a reply immediately. "She had her tour the first time she came! And even after that, she did her own exploring."

Giotto cocked a brow. "Did she now?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>-Flashback starts-<strong>_

"Why can't I tour the mansion?" Jules demanded of Giotto, G, and Alaude for the _n_th time since her stay.

"It's under renovation," Giotto explained.

"Too many traps," Alaude said at the same time.

"So don't you dare go exploring," G said with a glare.

_You'll ruin everything,_ the three of them thought in unison.

Jules stared back at them in exasperation. "Traps are fine and so is the fact that it's under renovation! I can walk through it!"

Giotto let out a soft sigh. "You should not be going into dusty places all the time. It is not befitting of a lady."

"Since when did you care about how a lady should act?" Jules glared at Giotto. Giotto in turn smiled and shrugged.

"I'm just thinking for the best."

Jules huffed. Then she whined. "G! I want a tour!"

G bristled when all of them looked at him. "Well don't look at me! And especially not like that, Jules."

Jules was giving him the puppy eyed look. G hated it when people did that—it made them look weird and he embarrassed.

"G-eee!"

"N…No," G sighed and rubbed his head while his eyes showed pure hatred towards Giotto and Alaude who were beginning to walk away. "As _Giotto_ over there has told you, we are under renovation, _aren't we,_ Giotto?"

"Yes, yes indeed," Giotto replied, slightly further than before. Jules turned around to see her brother and Giotto five metres away.

"Why are you so far?"

"Oh—are we?" Giotto looked at himself and at Alaude. "No, I don't think we are."

Jules frowned and quickly forgot about the matter. "I still want a tour before I leave!"

G growled in impatience. "And I'm telling you that's not possible!"

"You can have your tour the next time you come."

Their heads snapped to Alaude, the speaker of those unspeakable worlds.

"Alaude…" Giotto whispered. "Are you serio—"

"That's wonderful!" Jules beamed at her brother and clasped her hands together. "G, do you think you can give me the tour when the time comes?"

G stared at Alaude…

…who smirked.

_Why you…_ G promised himself that he was going to make Alaude's life miserable for as long as he lived.

"Fine. I'll do it with you. But Alaude has to come with us."

Jules blinked. "Oh! Yes, he does." She turned to her brother and said, "Brother, you have to come with us. Don't leave me all alone with G!"

"He won't do anything to you," Alaude said bluntly.

"We still need someone with us!"

"Good god, we aren't courting! We don't need a chaperone!" G said with a bit of panic.

"That's fine with me," Alaude cut in before G could say another word. "If you are not, then you do not need a chaperone. G knows perfectly well where all the traps are, and is perfectly capable of keeping you out of harm."

G gaped at Alaude in disbelief. _What reasoning is that!_

His gaze turned towards Giotto who had a soft, pleasant smile on his face as his eyes danced with unheard laughter.

"Alright!" Jules said, accepting things as how they are. She was smiling brightly at G when she said, "I will look forward to the tour the next time I visit!"

G frowned slightly. "And when will that be?"

Jules pondered over the question. At the corner of G's eye he noticed that Daemon, Lampo, Asari, and Knuckle entered the room. They froze on the spot when they heard G ask the question. Now, all the Guardians were waiting for the answer.

Alaude watched the other Guardians and snorted at the panic shown in their eyes. Then he left the room.

Giotto was trying not to laugh at the horror that was clearly visible on Lampo's face.

"Mm, I don't know. It will have to be when father is not busy entertaining others—they seem to always have balls and meetings at our mansion—_especially _our mansion. I couldn't even find an entire week of rest for months! This was my only week off. Next week our Aunt Mariella is visiting and mother says that I _must_ be present." Jules shook her head sadly. "I would rather stay here!"

"Well anyways, you can have your tour then," G said. _I hope that would be years away. _

_**-Flashback ends-**_

* * *

><p>"So, she didn't exactly get her promised tour," Giotto said.<p>

"Can't we just tell her that we're still under renovation? That brat, Lambo, _did_ go crazy and destroyed a few rooms. The library is also still a mess from something the other brat did. What's his name again? Hiago?"

"I think you mean Hayato," Giotto's mouth twitched upwards into a smile. "You can't even remember his name?"

G snorted. "I'm not going to bother."

Giotto handed G a file out of nowhere. "What—where'd that come from?" G stared at his good old friend, who just continued to smile.

"It's your mission. All the details are inside."

G took the file as though it were a ticking bomb. He flipped open the cover and skimmed through it:

_**RANK A MISSION**_

_TO:**G**_

_GOAL: TO GUIDE A FULL TOUR FOR A MISS JULES WITH NO HARM DONE TO THE MANSION_

_SUCCESS RATE: MUST BE 100%_

_DATE OF OPERATION: AS SOON AS POSSIBLE **(NOW)**._

_MISSION COMPLETION DATE: SUNSET_

_**BACKGROUND INFORMATION: **_

…

G didn't bother to read the background information, which was just a small paragraph and looked up at Giotto instead.

"Primo, this is the lamest Rank A mission I've ever read since becoming your right hand man."

"You are already very familiar with the target and the mission. You don't need more information than what you already know."

G looked into his friend's eyes and tried to look for even a hint of the seriousness he heard in Giotto's voice. He found none. He grinded his teeth and read the last lines:

_**ADDITOINAL COMMENTS**: We're all counting on the completion of this mission. Everyone will respect your privacy and stay out of your way. You will have no worries of distractions from the other Guardians._

…

_Signed,_

_**GIOTTO, VONGOLA PRIMO**_

…

_Signature of acceptance:_

…

"_What the f…" _G reread the additional comments. He snapped the poorly abused paper file shut and glared at Giotto. He was very tempted to smack the file onto Giotto's head and then burn it to ash with his lighter.

Giotto on the other hand, was looking at G expectantly. Of course, G wasn't about to refuse—he _couldn't_ refuse—since he was the one who promised to give her a tour the next time she arrived.

"Are you going to sign it or not?"

"I'm going to get back at you…" G said and snatched a pen from Giotto's hand and scrawled his name.

_**G, STORM GUARDIAN OF VONGOLA PRIMO, ACCEPTS THIS MISSION.**_

"Thank you! I wish you luck!" Giotto said to G as he stomped out of the room and shut the door with a loud bang.

Giotto stood to leave G's study when he spotted Asari in his garden. "What is Asari doing there, looking so gloomy?" He approached the window to observe his Rain Guardian.

Asari was currently trying to restore his garden back to its former glory with the help of the gardeners and other helpers available around the mansion. Giotto frowned in concern at the mess.

_Is this more of Jules' accidental problems?_ He decided to pay Asari a visit before Mace finished the snacks Lampo requested—whenever Lampo asked for snacks, everyone else ends up eating it as well.

* * *

><p>"Asari!" The Japanese man turned around and saw Giotto coming towards him. He smiled.<p>

"Hello!"

"Do you need any help?" Giotto wasn't going to bother to ask whether Jules came to visit Asari. From what he could see, she obviously did. And it wasn't Daemon or Alaude, since those two knew better than to start a war in the middle of Asari's garden.

Asari grinned. "I'm fine! We're almost done!" Giotto looked unconvinced. "Really, Giotto! It's a big improvement!"

Giotto nodded slowly as he took another look around the garden. "Then I'd hate to see how it was before."

"Where is she right now?" Asari asked.

"Having a tour with G. You know what to do."

Asari laughed. "Yes, yes I do. I'll tell the others."

Giotto nodded. "Thanks. I'll be in my room if you need me."

* * *

><p>G stood in front of the guest room Jules was staying in at the moment. He glared at the door as though that can make him avoid doing this mission. He sighed and rapped hard on the door. He waited for Jules to open it. When she didn't, he banged on the door even harder and said, "Jules! You're scheduled for a tour today!"<p>

There was still no answer. "Jules!"

He tried the knob and found it unlocked. He opened the door wide. The windows were shut, the bed was made, and everything was neatly put away. G sighed. "Why couldn't she treat the rest of the mansion like this?"

After deciding that she wouldn't be coming back to the room any time soon, he left it to search for the troublesome girl.

"Hey," he said and stopped a main cleaning the halls.

"Oh! Master G!" she stopped what she was doing and gave a slight bow.

"Have you seen Jules?"

"Um…I saw her walking towards the yard, out at the back; near the fountain."

G nodded and left her to her task. He walked down the stairs and peered out a window to see Jules sitting by the large fountain. It was strange to see her just sitting there, not doing anything but idly brushing her hands against the water and kicking her legs slightly. She looked up and saw G staring and smiled. She waved at him and said something but he couldn't hear her.

"Stay right there and _don't _move!" He shouted and made his way down. _I hope I can get there before she does something to mess up the fountain. The last time Alaude wrecked it, it took two months!_

Three minutes later he was standing in front of Jules. "What are you doing down here?"

Jules looked up at him with a smile, like always. "I was getting lonely in my room, so I came down for a walk."

G narrowed his eyes at her and then looked around them. "You better had not ruined anything."

"I did no such thing. Whatever put that idea in your head?" She looked hurt and upset. G rolled his eyes.

"Forget it. I'm supposed to give you your tour."

She instantly stopped frowning and grinned uncontrollably. "Finally! Where are we starting?"

"First floor. Follow me." G walked off quickly, hoping to get this over with before the sun goes down. He was really cutting it close though.

Jules obediently followed, which was a good thing. The bad thing was, she just couldn't stop talking.

"Uh huh," G said when Jules said something. He was only half paying attention, since most of what she said was daily things and wasn't worth conversing over.

"Okay," G said with a sigh. "We are now at the entrance, as you can see and know. I am going to just go by the places you know so we don't waste time."

"And then I went to Asari's garden earlier—oh, really? Why could we not go into ever room, G? It wouldn't take up _that_ much time." Again, she pouted.

"Because we have a time limit and I want to get through it," G said and started walking. _She was in Asari's garden? That doesn't sound good. _The guards saluted to them as they passed.

"So, here's the main hall, the gathering place for when we host balls and other parties. Up there, you see the balcony, and the stairs that lead to the second floor. On we go."

Jules yelped. "That's fast!"

G snorted and pointed to another room as they passed by. "That's the room you were directed to when you first came. It's actually the drawing room although it is also used as the torture chamber, the snack room, the play room, the training room, the fighting room, or the confinement room."

Jules gave G a look that clearly said that she thought that they were an impossible bunch that had no self control.

Up ahead, Lampo was casually strolling down the hall. He had both hands in his pockets and a frown on his face. It looked like he was half crazed and half scared of something he saw. _It must be something Daemon did to him, _G thought.

When he saw G and Jules, he put two and two together and swiftly turned back around and walked away rather quickly, not doing anything to hide his disgraceful retreat. G tsked.

Directing his attention back to Jules, he sighed and muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," G said when he really thought, _So far so good. Nothing's broken or torn. Yet._

"Oh, look at this!"

G turned around quickly to see what Jules was doing. She was crouched on the floor looking at an animal.

"How did that get in here?" G pulled Jules to her feet and away from the fox. It was small—probably just a cub. It had orange and black fur with white on the tail, paws, and ears.

"Awe, don't make it go away," Jules said to G. "It's just a poor little animal."

G lifted the cub by the scruff and stared at it. "Poor animal! Look what he did to the wall—and the floor. Besides—he could have bit you or something. Then I will have Alaude to deal with!"

"Nonesense," Jules scowled at G and tried to take the cub from him. "This—he wouldn't harm me! He's just a little baby fox."

"Yeah, and what's going to happen when the mama comes to find it, eh?" G pushed Jules carefully aside and began to head down the hall.

"You can't just toss it out like trash!"

"I'm not. I'm giving it to Asari for him to deal with."

Jules bit back her retort. "Oh." Whatever she thought G was going to say, it wasn't that.

"Hurry up!" Jules came out of her musing and saw that the Storm Guardian was waiting for her at a door. When he got her attention, he walked in.

"You should at least wait for me!"

* * *

><p>Asari was taking a rest from gardening in his room when G barged in unannounced. He opened his eyes to look at G, who was holding a fox.<p>

"Where did the fox come from?" He was surprised that G was holding it in the first place.

"It was out in the corridor," G said through gritted teeth. Asari widened his eyes in surprise and laughed merrily.

"I wonder how it ended up there. Maybe the kitchen staff left the door open."

"Maybe," G replied gruffly. "Anyways, here. You deal with it. Little missy Jules won't let me throw it out." The fox was struggling to get out of G's grasp.

Jules blushed and harrumphed. Asari nodded his head and glanced at Jules, who was walking around, looking at various things Asari had around his room. Asari carefully put the fox to the side and told it to stay. Surprisingly, the fox did as it was told.

He turned back to Jules. She was holding up a ceramic plate that Asari found in the market a few months earlier. He gulped and replied to whatever G said to him.

G frowned when Asari said, "Yeah, you're right," when he was asking if Asari could make sure to take care of the annoying little cub.

He said his friend's name sharply to get his attention. "Asari."

"Eh?" Asari looked at him. At first his eyes were distracted, but then they focused on G's. "G, I heard from Giotto that you and Jules are finally going to have the tour." Asari stood suddenly and approached them. He carefully took his item from Jules and said, "The two of you should get going. I would hate to have distracted you from it."

G stared at Asari as he ushered them out. "As it happens, I have to get back to work. So, if you would please."

Jules smiled. "Alright. See you later, Asari." She pulled G's arm when he didn't move. "G, let's go."

"Yeah, _fine,"_ G glared at Asari, who chuckled nervously. He was just glad his room wasn't yet another accidental mess.

_I think I'm going to hate this tour. I'm blaming Giotto if the mansion needs a whole makeover._

* * *

><p>After showing her the basement—Alaude's Realm, as a few of them call it—G made his way up to the second floor with a permanent growl on his face. Already, Jules had accidentally touched one of Talbot's unstable inventions that he was working on and caused some kind of smoke to be released. It caused them to have a slightly redder skin tone. Not only them, but others within the area were also affected. As long as their skin came into contact with this smoke, their skin turned red. With G's red tattoo and red hair, he looked very much like a tomato, or anything else that is red.<p>

"TALBOT! WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU?"

G growled again and made everyone leave the room, and then he shut the doors so that it wouldn't spread too much.

"My, that was interesting!" Jules looked at her arms and wiggled her fingers. "Do you think it would wear off?"

"Sometimes I wish you were more like Alaude: quiet and prefers to stay in his rooms than deal with other people."

Then when they reached a hall that had many paintings and portraits, Jules decided that Giotto's portrait with his Guardians should be where the picture of the mansion was when it was first built. Then she decided that _another_ painting should be where _another_ painting was. G had to stop her from moving the one with all the Guardians; otherwise she would activate a secret chamber—and _that,_ he didn't want happening.

"Alright, let's _go."_ G quickly had her out of there, and snapped his fingers at one of the cleaning staff and pointed to the paintings. After serving under them for so many years, they were able to have silent ways of communicating with their masters. The staff nodded and went to rearrange the portraits.

G reflected back to what Giotto said. _He said the other Guardians weren't allowed to interfere. But he never said that I couldn't have the staff clean up the mess or stop it before it got too out of hand. Why does he want the other Guardians out of it anyways?_

* * *

><p><strong>In Giotto's Study<strong>

Giotto finished signing the last document of the day and leaned back. He looked at his pocket watch and saw that there was still plenty of time before the sun would set. He sighed and looked at the comment he put on G's mission.

"Well, isn't _this_ annoying? I would have had some of them help, but…"

All the Guardians found time hours before he told G about the mission to personally visit his study. First, it was Alaude, who came in at dawn. At the time, Giotto was just getting ready to start his work of replying to messages and signing papers. Alaude threatened that he would make Giotto regret the day he was born if he made him help G in any way for the tour. Giotto grimaced and nodded, knowing fully that Alaude would make it worse if he made him aid G.

Then in the middle of reading a report, Lampo barged in an hour later. He told Giotto that he would beat him up, never talk to him again, never go on missions again, and would move out of the mansion and never return if Giotto asked him to help G.

"You aren't serious, are you?" He had asked Lampo.

When Lampo stared at Giotto in the eye, Giotto knew that his Lightning Guardian meant business. He walked out of the room without saying another word.

Giotto sighed. He thought, at the time, that at least Knuckle would help. But it was half an hour later that Knuckle came to inform him that he had to spend the entire day in his rooms praying to God. He went on to list the reasons for doing this, but Giotto stopped listening after the words "spend the day in my room" were said. Giotto had waved Knuckles off with a sigh.

"Yes, alright. I'll tell everyone not to disturb you. I suppose you will not be able to help G with Jules either?"

"Regretfully," Knuckle said in a very unregretful tone.

While taking his fifteen minute break half an hour after Knuckle left, Daemon appeared at the doorway.

"Come in," Giotto called before Daemon could knock.

"Nufufufu. You sound irritated, to tell me to come in before I knocked," Daemon said and closed the door behind him.

Giotto grunted and said, "Are you here to tell me something?"

"Nufufu. Yes, I am."

"Spill it already. I'm ready. You won't be the first one to leave behind a fellow comrade who has to face the enemy alone."

Daemon looked at Giotto with an amused expression. "Yes, very well then." He cleared his throat and continued, "Primo, if you ever mention the words "help G" and "tour" and "Jules" in the same sentence as an order, I will make the rest of your life living hell. I will make sure you regret ever making me do what you are thinking of doing, and I will do everything that is within my powers to make your life a misery."

Giotto sighed loudly. "Alright, I will remember that."

Daemon chuckled and left Giotto's office. "Great, No one's willing to help. I've already received three promises for severe injuries from three of my Guardians, both mental and physical. No doubt, Asari wouldn't agree either. Looks like G will have to fend for himself."

And that was how G ended up having all the Guardians doing their best to avoid him.

* * *

><p><strong>With G and Jules, on the third floor<strong>

"I'm sorry?" Jules tried to keep pace with G, who was storming ahead. "Truly, I am. I didn't mean to create the domino affect with the stones and glass mirrors and windows."

"I know you didn't _mean_ to but it still happened. And that over there is the first training room, designed to keep the illusions from seeping out. Next!"

G was practically speed walking now, not giving Jules a chance to stop without being left behind.

"Here's the start of where you didn't get to see the last time you were here, although there's nothing special about it." G came to a stop at the steps of another staircase, to the fourth floor.

"Ooohh, but I still want to see," Jules said and gave a little jump. G rolled his eyes and started climbing.

"G!"

"What!"

"You have a hole in the wall. Shouldn't you have someone come and repair it?" Jules pointed across to the other side.

"What are you talking about?" G glanced around, irritated. Then he noticed a hole that was forcefully made into the wall. It looked like someone _threw_ something pointy at it, and then yanked it out by force. It was a circular hole, not very big. He wouldn't have noticed it if Jules hadn't pointed it out.

"How the hell am I supposed to know where it came from?" G scowled and continued walking. That hole, was actually from Hibari's tonfa.

"Anyways, here are the rooms. There's nothing interesting to look in them, so on we go."

"Have you had a party recently?" She asked. "But even if you did, the guests would stay here for only a few days. I sense that these have been used for a long time. And recently at that."

G narrowed his eyes.

"There are only us Guardians and Giotto who live on these floors, with the butlers and maids downstairs, along with the kitchen staff. They all have their own rooms when they stay for the night. Is it so surprising that these rooms are used? Hurry up. There's nothing to look here." It wouldn't be good if something from Decimo's family was left behind, and discovered by Jules.

"But it doesn't make sense," Jules said and followed G up another flight of stairs.

"What doesn't make sense?"

"I'm never wrong when sensing someone's presence. Have you had people staying in those rooms? I thought you never used those rooms, since you had your own rooms."

"We have guests," G admitted. "They stayed for a while. They're gone now. You would probably never see them again. And this is Asari's room for relaxing. I'm not going to bother going in there, since everything he has seems to break when anyone other than him touches them."

"That's odd."

"No, it's just the way he handles things," G said. "The next floor is _our_ living quarters. Then there are two more floors above that. We're going back down."

"What's on the last two floors? May we go see?"

"It's better if you don't," G advised. "Hey—what are you doing?"

"I want to look at your room!"

G's eyes filled with dread when she started to climb the steps. "I didn't say you could do that."

At the top of the steps, she walked on, and her sleeve accidentally clung to the leaves of a plant that was planted in a vase. It began to topple to the carpet. G dived for it and breathed out a sigh of relief when he caught it…upside down.

All the dirt, stones, and water spilled onto the floor. It was a plus that the vase didn't shatter, but it seems like the poor plant needed some serious help.

"Jules, _come back here!"_

"In a second, G!" She sang out as she looked for G's room.

"Oh, hell." G's shirt was now stained with dirt. He left the mess where it was and wiped his hands on the already dirtied shirt.

"Oops."

"Now what?" G looked up and saw Jules steadying herself against the wall.

"I almost tripped over the carpet."

"Yeah right, there's no way you can trip."

"I can so. Now there's a tear," Jules said and examined her skirt. Indeed, there was a small tear at the bottom of the skirt. Not only that, but the carpet also seemed to sport a hole.

"H-How did _that_ happen?"

"Huh? Oh, that? I don't know. The hole that I tripped on, I suppose. Maybe it was torn even more after my foot was dragged into it."

G couldn't believe it. But the worse thing was that he could actually imagine it happening. He face palmed. "How can your petty accidents turn themselves into such disasters?"

"I found your room!" Jules said gleefully. She twisted the knob. G smirked when she had a confused look on her face.

"You can never open that."

She frowned and dragged G towards the door. G swore. He should have been more careful to not let her get a hold of him again, since she had an iron grip.

"Hah. I bet this'll do." She pulled his arm so that it touched the door knob. G growled into her ear and she jumped back in surprise. She hadn't expected his face to be so close to hers when she pulled him. G rolled his eyes inwardly. He closed his door which was already opening. _Good. Seems like she can still be surprised._

"Look, we don't have time for this. It's already almost noon. You made us miss Lampo's snack time."

"Lampo's snack time?" Jules asked. G couldn't tell whether she was blushing, or was it just the damn red skin dye that Talbot mysteriously made.

"It's a time when everyone steals Lampo's snacks. Come on." He guided them back _down_ the steps, which took about half an hour, since Jules was walking slowly and kept on stopping to look at stuff.

"Where are we going?"

G didn't reply and continued to move. He was too hungry to snap back.

* * *

><p>Giotto and the rest of the Guardians were just getting themselves comfortable in the dining hall when G came in with Jules trailing behind.<p>

"Ooh, so we're having our noon meal," she said. "You could have told me."

The Guardians were staring at G as he seated himself next to Giotto. They took in the stained and ripped shirt, and the red skin. Lampo had to cover his mouth to hide a chuckle.

They continued to stare at him as he pulled the chair in. He noticed them staring and glared. "What are you looking at?"

_Is our mansion still in one piece? _Their eyes asked him. He washed his hands in the small bowl beside him and told Giotto in a low voice, "We'll be done before sunset. Giotto, you need repairs on the fourth floor wall and a new carpet on our floor. As well as Talbot to fix something that happened on the first floor. It made my skin all red."

"Are you sure you'll be done by sunset?"

"Who do you think I am?" G scoffed.

"You should have changed your clothing before you came down," Asari said.

"There was no time."

"How did you get soil on your shirt anyways?" Lampo asked in a bored tone. He was trying to cover his laughter.

"Don't even ask."

Jules felt Reborn's aura before he entered the room. She stopped what she was doing—which was talking to Alaude, who wasn't answering—and looked around for the source.

Alaude looked at his sister when she stopped talking. "What?"

"I've been meaning to ask, but why does Giotto's cheery mansion seem to have a scary atmosphere to it now?"

Before Alaude could reply, Reborn walked in and sat down next across from G.

Alaude titled his head towards Reborn as an answer and began to eat what was on his plate.

Reborn felt Jules' stare and looked up. He saw the woman become flustered at being caught staring at a stranger and smirked.

"Ciao."

"C-Ciao…" Jules blushed. This man looked handsome and had such a nice voice. He was also mysterious and she could tell that he had many secrets.

Alaude rolled her eyes at her sister's reaction.

Their meal was mostly quiet and uneventful, except that Jules kept glancing over at the strange man with a fedora.

"Who was that man?" Jules asked G when they continued her tour. G gave her a look that she didn't bother to interpret.

"That was…Giotto's…temporary hitman." He wasn't sure how much he should tell her, and he wasn't exactly sure whether he should be happy or worried that she took an interest to the hitman from the future. The happy part would be that she might give up courting him, but the worried part came from the problem with her finding out about the time travelling.

"He seems so…" Jules trailed off as she tapped her chin with a dreamy smile on her face. G was definitely not used to seeing her react this way to someone else. It was, well, weird._ Yeah, that's the word,_ he thought. He snapped his fingers in front of her face to bring her back to reality.

"We still have outside the mansion. Then we will be finished."

"Do you think you can introduce me to that man? What is his name?"

"His name?" G opened a door for them. "He's called Reborn."

"Reborn…"

"Oi, are you going to pay attention to the tour or not?"

"O-Oh? Oh, yes! Yes, we are in the middle of the tour, aren't we? Where will go next?"

G sighed and rubbed his head. "Here, this garden. You were sitting here this morning, so you should be pretty familiar with it. Some nights—some rare nights, we all come out here to star gaze." G looked up at the sky. "Those nights are pretty rare though. No one argues or fights that night."

"Mm, it can't be _that_ rare," Jules countered. "With Giotto, Asari, Knuckle, and probably you, that's already half the group. And the stars are beautiful. You'll be under the sky, watching the stars, little bulbs of hot light, like the sun. I suppose that Asari is the one who usually stops the fights, seeing that he is always the calm one," she said cheerfully.

G let out a scoff as they walked. "That's mostly right. That over there is the outdoor training yard. It's where our men train daily. They're taking their break at the moment."

Jules nodded. "It's pretty big."

"It has to be big. Otherwise they won't have enough room to practice shooting at targets, or combat skills. Over here, on the other side, is _our_ training yard."

Jules stopped where she stood and looked for the difference. It was bigger, that was obvious. But she also saw that there were large, brick walls dividing it from the bricks of the main mansion. There was also a wall on all the other sides except for the one facing the forest.

"Why…"

"Because our training is a bit different than everyone else's. We go all out when we fight each other, so we need a lot more space and a lot more reinforcement so we don't destroy the mansion by accident." G wasn't so worried about Jules ruining anything here, since the place was meant to be ruined, and it was outdoors so he wasn't too concerned.

They continued on with their tour, as Tsuna and his family were on the train, returning to the mansion, wondering who this Jules was…

* * *

><p>"Do you think she'll be like Alaude?" Gokudera wondered aloud on their second day on the train.<p>

They were currently relaxing after having lunch. Hibari, like always, was on the roof, this time, fighting with Mukuro. Both of them skipped lunch and were planning on fighting until they dropped. Chrome was in her room and Ryohei was doing his own training in the room. Gokudera, Yamamoto, Lambo, and Tsuna were lounging on the couches and floor.

"Hang on. Tsuna," Yamamoto asked, "wouldn't there be a problem if she sees us?"

Tsuna stopped his little tickle attack on Lambo to look at Yamamoto in shock.

"You're right, Yamamoto! Oh gosh. We're doomed! She'll suspect something if we suddenly return! And we look a lot like Primo's famiglia!"

"I'm sure not everyone will notice," Gokudera said, trying to convince himself as well as his boss. "Primo's family saw themselves in us…but maybe other people are too stupid to see the similarities. Here's nothing to worry about, Juudaime! I'll protect you from her if she does anything!"

"That sounds a bit…extreme…"

"SAWADA! OCTOPUS-HEAD! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"

Gokudera twitched. "None of your business, Turf Top!"

Yamamoto tried to calm the two hot heads down. "Maa, Gokudera! Senpai should know about it as well!"

"Are you crazy! It's going to take forever to explain something as simple as this to him!" Gokudera pointed an accusing finger at Ryohei.

"What are you taling about, Octopus Head? I understand things just fine!" Ryohei retorted.

"No you don't!"

"Try me! To the EXTREME!"

"Tch! Fine. Alaude's sister is visiting them at the moment, and it might cause a problem if we suddenly showed up. Do you understand _that?"_

Ryohei blinked. "ALAUDE HAS A SISTER? THAT'S _EXTREME! _We should meet her!"

Tsuna t sweatdropped. "He got the less important half right…but…"

"SAWADA!"

"H-Hai?"

"ALAUDE SHOULD INTRODUCE HER TO US!"

Tsuna cringed. "I—uh, s-sure…?" He was starting to have a bad feeling about this. And he didn't know exactly how right he was.

* * *

><p><strong>OMAKE:<strong>

_What happened the days after Alaude and Daemon destroyed Asari's garden…_

Giotto continued to give his friend worried glances throughout their supper. Asari wasn't looking too good. He had this aura around him that was so gloomy he was worried that he might go into depression.

"Asari, you're not eating," Giotto said gently.

"Hm?" Asari glanced at his plate. "Ah." He stabbed his fork into a piece of meat rather forcefully. Daemon twitched and Alaude continued eating while watching Asari from the corner of his eye. The Rain Guardian was now chewing on the piece of meat with murder in his eyes which made the two shiver slightly.

"What happen—" G shot Lampo a look, warning him to not ask. Lampo sighed. He half guessed it, but he just wanted to make sure. If Asari was acting like this, something probably happened to something he cared about, mainly his garden.

Lampo put a meatball in his mouth as he looked at his companions. Daemon wasn't even joking, or laughing that horrid laugh of his. In fact, he seemed to be for once, minding his own business and eating as casually as he could. Lampo switched his gaze to Alaude, but he couldn't find anything there. He looked as normal as normal could get in this household.

"Giotto, please excuse me," Asari sighed miserably. Giotto nodded and Asari left the table, looking worse for wear. The rest of them exchanged glances.

"Daemon and Alaude, the two of you are going to have to do something about this," Giotto said.

They glared at each other.

The next day when Giotto bumped into Asari, he tried for a cheerful greeting. "Asari! It's a nice day, isn't it?"

Asari looked outside. "Yes, indeed it is. It is a nice day." With that, he walked off, leaving Giotto in the hall. Giotto sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

Later, G bumped into Asari. "Watch where you're going," G said.

Asari sighed and didn't bother to reply. G watched Asari's back as he left and shuddered.

Knuckle grinned when he saw Asari. He had just come back from a stay in town and hadn't caught drift of what was happening.

"Asari! It's good to see you again! So far, everyone in had such a dreadful face. I was looking forward to seeing at least you and me still in good spirits!"

Asari's mouth twitched upwards slightly before it turned back into his neutral face. "Good morning, Knuckle."

Knuckle blinked in confusion as Asari brushed pass him to go on his way.

"What happened while I was gone?"

The similar events happened when Asari passed by Lampo, Daemon, and Alaude.

When they met for breakfast, Giotto had a sad frown on his face. He gave his friends a half hearted greeting, and they in return did the same.

The kitchen staffed sensed their masters' gloominess and frowned themselves, in worry.

The next day followed, and everyone's mood fell. Giotto didn't feel like doing paper work anymore. It was too depressing. And there weren't any birds chirping cheerfully to a tune to cheer him up either. It was probably because their homes have been destroyed and they were forced to venture into the forest. He sighed and put the pen down. He decided to take a walk. But that didn't help, since everyone he passed seemed to be in a bad mood after an encounter with Asari. Maybe he should try to cheer up Asari instead. So, he headed for Asari's room.

"Asari?" Giotto poked his head into the room and found Asari sitting on a chair. Asari sighed and got up. He didn't seem to notice Giotto.

But, Giotto noticed that Asari wasn't looking too good. His clothes for were wrinkled and not taken care of. Asari walked to the window in a slow trance as though he was a zombie. He let out another sigh, and Giotto frowned as well. He sighed as he wondered what he could do for his Rain Guardian. Then Asari moved to the plants he had in his room. After looking at them for a few minutes, he sighed again. Then he took out his swords and started cleaning them, all the while sighed.

Giotto stared at the already very sharp blades and gulped. He quietly closed the door and stood outside for a few seconds.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh…" Giotto let out a moan and rubbed his temples. G was alarmed when he walked by and saw his boss acting this way.

"Giotto…what happened?"

"See for yourself," Giotto said and gestured to the door. He let out a sigh and shook his head sadly.

G took a peak into Asari's room and closed the door rather quickly. He wasn't sure whether he liked the look he saw in Asari's eyes.

"Giotto, maybe you should tell Daemon and Alaude to go mainland for a while. They might be safer with a body of water between them and Asari."

Giotto's eyes sharpened. "No. They aren't going anywhere. They are going to help fix this problem or die trying. Come on, G."

Elsewhere in the mansion, Daemon was frowning as he strolled down the hallway. On the other end, Alaude was also coming towards him. They looked at each other and then shifted their eyes so they were looking straight ahead and not at each other. When they passed one another, they stopped.

"Nufufu. I can't stand this anymore."

Alaude glanced at Daemon. "Then do something about it."

"Why don't you?"

"You're the one who suggested it."

"Nufufu. You are smarter than the others. You and I are probably thinking of the same thing."

Alaude and Daemon exchanged looks.

"Hn."

"Nufufu."

The next day, Alaude and Daemon were walking towards Asari's room. Anyone who saw the two gawped and ran away. How was it possible that the two Guardians, who hated each other, were able to walk side by side? And were they holding what they thought they were?

"Asari, we have a present for you," Daemon said and chuckled. Alaude stood out of the way as Daemon opened the door when Asari didn't reply. It was a good thing he did, since one of Asari's knives flew out and hit the wall behind Daemon. A small gash appeared on Daemon's face. Alaude raised an eyebrow as he pulled the blade back out of the wall to return to its owner afterwards.

Daemon sighed. "And this is what I get for apologising: a scratch. How wonderful. Anyways, Asari, may we come in?"

The room was dark with the curtains drawn in tight. Asari was sitting on his bed. "Yes, you might as well."

Daemon entered first and then Alaude.

They walked towards Asari who was still not looking at them. Alaude tossed something onto the bed beside Asari, and then held out a box of something. Daemon did the same. Asari glanced at the packages that were thrown on his bed. He picked up the ones Alaude threw and opened the first one.

Seeds. Seeds for planting. He found the same in the other packages. The seeds were organised. There were many different types of flowers and plants that could be grown from these seeds. He looked up their faces and saw that they were looking at _him_ expectantly. In the boxes were some plants that were already half grown.

Daemon spoke up when Asari looked at them questioningly. "We went to look for the plants that you had growing in your garden, so you could replant them. Do you know how long it was to find some of these?"

Asari stared at his unexpected surprise.

Alaude put down his box. "Look outside," he ordered Asari. The three of them went to the window, opening the curtains that Asari had closed after Giotto left.

Outside was a perfect view of his garden. All the destroyed plants were cleaned away, showing just the dirt and the paths. There were young trees that were just recently planted.

"Did you two…?" Asari looked at the trees, the plants, and the seed packages, then at the two Guardians.

Alaude looked away and grunted. Daemon chuckled. "Yes, we did. We also came to apologise for it. I can't stand seeing everyone so gloomy. I need everyone happy, and _I'm _going to be the one who makes them feel miserable."

Asari, for the first time in days, smiled genuinely. Alaude narrowed his eyes at the smile. It _looked_ fine, but there was something _off_ about it.

"This is great, thank you both," Asari said and laughed. "Thank you."

Daemon gave his own smile. Alaude still looked on suspiciously. And it was a good thing he did, otherwise, he would have been just as surprised as Daemon when Asari decided to pull both of them with him for a quick training session.

Giotto bumped into Asari later that day. "Giotto! It's great to see you again! Sorry I was ignoring everyone for the past few days," Asari said and laughed. He smiled at Giotto and patted him on the shoulder.

Giotto was confused and found no words. "But…what…how? Are you alright?"

"Oh, I'm perfectly fine! Come, let's go down for dinner! I have a big appetite today."

"Alright," Giotto agreed. He was fine with anything as long as his Rain Guardian was back to his usual self. His Hyper Intuition told him that Daemon and Alaude fixed things up, and made Asari cheerful again. This, he was thankful. There was no way he could go on in life if his Rain wasn't always there to help them out. But what he _didn't_ know, was the price that they paid.

At the table, they were all waiting for Knuckle, Daemon, and Alaude. When Knuckle came in, he apologised for being late.

"What took you so long? And where are the other two?" G asked.

"Ore-sama is getting hungry," Lampo complained.

Knuckle laughed. "I don't think those two would be coming. Oh, Margaret, would you be so kind as to bring Daemon and Alaude's meals to the infirmary? Thank you."


	27. A Cooking Camp?

The grand finale... is here!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty Seven<strong>

G opened the door to Giotto's study. "Hey."

Giotto smiled. "G." He was sitting at his desk, using the time he had to complete whatever he had to read and sign.

"Here," G said and gave his boss the report of the tour yesterday, for all it was worth. Giotto took it and put it on his desk without looking at it.

"How did it go?"

G frowned and narrowed his eyes. "There were a few tears here and there. Nothing serious…but there was a lot of those little things that add up to a big mess. There was also that…chemical reaction. I still can't find Talbot to ask why it was in the middle of the mansion of all places." G rubbed his still pale red skin. He then thought of all the other things that happened during Jules' walk around the mansion and sighed. "All the details are in there." Giotto nodded and opened it. G continued. "It will cost little to fix it all."

"But that's not what I'm worried about," Giotto said. G nodded sharply with a growl.

"It's the hassle of _cleaning it all up._ It won't cost a thing, but it will take a long while before everything is in order again._"_

"Wait a moment," Giotto said with a finger raised. He was frozen where he sat for a long time before looking at G saying, "When are the others coming back?"

G blinked. "Others? Oh. You're talking about those future kids."

"Yes."

G crossed his arms over his chest and let out a grunt. "I spoke to Reborn before I came here and he said they would be arriving in two days, I think."

"Jules said that she was only staying for a week?"

G nodded. "They shouldn't meet each other if we time everything right. Maybe we can slow down Decimo a little so it would give Jules a chance to leave. She'll see the similarities we have with them and suspect that something is up."

"Let's hope that the…excuse that they are our relatives will do the trick." Giotto rubbed his head with both hands and shouted to no one in particular, "Why am I having so many problems?"

* * *

><p>Jules wandered the mansion, casually looking at the decorations placed throughout the mansion. She made sure to not trip on things. Unlike what most people think, she actually, <em>really<em> tries to not make a mess of things. Except that those times only occur when she is in a very bad mood or is in danger—which causes her bad mood.

She was currently trying to look for Reborn, but that was hard when no one was willing to tell her where he was.

She walked up the steps and was careful to avoid the workers who were doing their best to fix several things in the mansion. A few hours later she gave up and sat at a window ledge on the second floor, looking out to the town.

"Ah!" Someone exclaimed from behind Jules. She turned and saw Riku, a maid. "Miss Jules, it is dangerous to sit so close to the edge!"

"I'll be fine, as long as I don't fall," Jules said airily. "If I do, I can always save myself."

Riku gulped and nodded silently, still looking sceptical. "Even though you say that, we still worry."

Jules blew out a breath and stood on the marble floor. "There. I shall sit on the first floor then." _Although the view isn't as nice, _ she thought sadly.

She spent her day being bored out of her mind. What did ladies usually do at times like these? Tea, stitching, sewing, and gossip. Oh…maybe she could go horseback riding. She flung the thought aside with a frown. She wasn't in the mood. As for working with things to do with needles…she looked at her hands and scoffed. She wasn't going to waste her time doing anything as useless as that. Gossip…there was no one else to talk to about the latest news going on in their society.

During supper, she noticed that most of the Guardians seemed tense. She had enough of it by the end of the meal.

She put her knife and fork down. "Alright. What is it? What's going on?"

"What are you talking about?" Giotto asked. _If she knows about more people coming she'll use that as an excuse to stay longer. _

"You're all unsettled. I could feel it."

"And how did you come up with something as ridiculous as that?" G asked. Jules grinned with a shrug.

"How do you know when an enemy is near? It's a feeling."

"We are not unsettled, exactly," Giotto said slowly. "There's just a meeting coming up, that's all."

Jules narrowed her eyes slightly but nodded.

* * *

><p>The next day, Giotto held his pen very still over his paper. G, who was in the room with him organising the paperwork, observed his boss for a few minutes. When he still made no move to sign it, he spoke.<p>

"Giotto, is there something wrong with the contract?"

"Wha?" Giotto looked down at the tick paper he was to sign. "Oh—no, no. No, there's nothing wrong."

"Then you must be thinking about Decimo."

Giotto gave G a crooked grin. "Sorry."

"Tch! That bunch is really getting on my nerves even though they aren't here. Stop thinking about them and get working."

"But really. I hope they arrive after Jules leaves."

"Don't worry. Jules is leaving after the noon meal. Decimo should be arriving sometime just after that, which means they won't be in the mansion at the same time."

"I hope so," Giotto said in a quiet voice. "We have to make sure that happens. Is Jules packed? I noticed that she brought quite a few things with her."

G scoffed. "There's no way she'd be packed now. She usually packs an hour or so before she leaves. Or," he corrected, "She gets someone else to do the packing for her."

Giotto grinned. "How do you know that? I didn't."

G glared. "That's because you are not always bothered with her chattering to you every free second you have." His glare told Giotto that it was _his_ fault that Jules was stuck to him like glue.

Giotto laughed. "No, it wasn't my fault that I came down with a high fever at the last minute. Besides, it happened so many years ago."

G was still glowering at him. "She would be pestering _you_ instead of _me_ if you were the one with her."

"Ah…maybe you should find Riku to help with the packing," Giotto said.

"Good idea. See you later, Giotto."

"Yes, see you later."

G closed the door and wandered around to look for the maid called Riku. When he found her, he told her what he needed. "I need you to go to Jules' room to help her pack."

"But Miss Jules is not in her room at the moment."

"And then—what?" G rewinds in his mind and heard what Riku said. "Well then find her and tell her to start packing."

Riku nodded and went straight to work.

G went out to the stables to look for their messenger. He found the boy on a stack of hay next to a horse. He was wearing a dull blue shirt with brown pants. He had black hair and grey eyes, which were closed at the moment.

"Hey."

The boy's eyes snapped open immediately. In the same second, he sprang to his feet, alert. G nodded in approval. "Is there anything you need, Master G?"

"I need you to stay at the train station to receive a group of…eight teenagers around the same age as you. They're going to be an odd and loud bunch. Don't ask anything, but take them back here, on my orders. And tell them that they will be walking back here."

The boy stared at G.

"Do you not understand Italian?" G tapped his foot impatiently.

"It takes _an hour_ to walk back here on foot while it's only half an hour—maybe even less—on horseback!" He said in dismay. Then he thought of something. "Master G, are you telling me that I have to _walk _there and back with them?"

"You could run as well. Come to think of it, you _have_ been lazing about too often these days."

"But Master G, that's unfair."

"That's life for you. And get back here alive." G walked off, leaving the boy more confused than ever. He was sure that he would be able to survive Tsuna's family, no matter how dangerous they were. The kid wasn't the Vongola's messenger for nothing.

G saw that Jules' carriage was ready and the driver was going over it again to make sure everything was in working order. For only one person leaving the mansion, the place was loud with everyone moving about in frenzy.

He spotted Lampo dodging servants as he tried to make his way to his room. G snagged his collar and drag him back.

Lampo stared at G and sighed. "What?"

"Why is everyone running about?"

"I don't know. It has something to do with Jules."

"Tch. You're no use."

"Well _excuse_ me, if I don't know what's going on." Lampo fixed his shirt and stalked off.

* * *

><p>Tsuna was sitting in a chair on the train, waiting nervously. In just half a day, they would be arriving at Vongola's mansion.<p>

And everyone was loud and being themselves. Which meant the train was once again, a sorry mess.

He had managed to calm them all down for roughly half an hour, but they were at it again.

"I'm telling you that boxing is better than whatever you're talking about," Ryohei said to Gokudera in his loudest voice.

Gokudera's brow twitched. "UMA! THEY'RE UMAs!"

"BOXING IS BETTER THAN UMAs!"

"Boxing is a stupid sport while UMAs are rare and unknown!"

"Ohh, now you've done it." Yamamoto laughed. "You just insulted Senpai's favourite sport!"

Tsuna winced as he thought of what condition the train would be in by the end of their ride.

On the other side of the room, Lambo was talking—or bragging—to Chrome about something, while for once, Mukuro and Hibari weren't fighting. Hibari was still alone outside, but Mukuro was with them, putting in his opinion at random moments to rile up the topic.

_For once Hibari isn't picking a fight with Mukuro…_ Tsuna thought in awe. _And Mukuro is here, talking—well, _arguing, _with Gokudera and Onii-san. I think the world is about to end._

"Hie!"

Before, Gokudera and Ryohei were just in a very loud verbal argument, but now they were in a first fight.

"Gokudera-kun! Onii-san, please stop fighting!"

"But Juudaime, he insulted UMAs!"

"He insulted boxing to the EXTREME! I can't let him off the hook, Sawada!"

Tsuna winced. "Well, both of you insulted each other, so why don't we just call it a day?"

"Yeah, Gokudera!" Yamamoto piped in. "There's no use in fighting over it and getting hurt."

"You don't know anything about it, Baseball Freak!"

It took a while before everyone was able to calm down. Gokudera decided to work on new moves with his dynamite with pencil and paper, and Ryohei was again, trying to drag Tsuna with him to train.

"No, please, Onii-san! I'm through with training! I'm going to die if I train with you again!" Tsuna dug his heels into the ground as Ryohei tried to drag him out.

"Oi! Release Juudaime this instant!"

_Oh gosh, here we go again,_ Tsuna groaned out loud as Ryohei and Gokudera began to argue.

* * *

><p>"Come on, hurry up," Polario said as he clapped his hands to quicken the pace of the others who were moving Lady Jules' belongings onto the carriage for the long ride home. "No, not there, Marceo, that goes in the back. And be careful with it!"<p>

An hour later the butler allowed them all to rest and have food. He himself went in to tell Jules that her things were ready and that it was time for lunch.

She thanked him and they made their way down.

"This was such a short visit," Jules said with a sigh as they waited for the food to be brought into the room. "Shorter than usual."

"It wasn't _that _much shorter," Lampo said.

"Oh, but I stayed only for a little more than a week. I usually stay for a month."

"I got a message from father," Alaude interrupted and turned to eye his sister. "He says something came up and needs you at home."

Giotto looked at Alaude and raised both eyebrows at the information.

Asari smiled. "Then it's a good thing you were ready to leave anyways."

Jules smiled sadly. "Yes. But Alaude, did father say what happened?" Alaude gave a slight shake of his head.

Jules pondered over this through the meal. She stopped when she was half finished with another thought.

"That chandelier should be moved to the side slightly."

Everyone froze.

"Oh?" Giotto said cautiously after swallowing his mouthful. Throughout their meals since she came, she had not uttered a single word of anything like this, and they were hoping that her visit would end that way. Apparently not—but it was a good thing it didn't happen every day.

"Yes, as well as the colour. You should really paint the room a different colour that glows when the candles are lit and the sun hits the walls. It's quite dull at the moment."

In fact, the room was not dull at all. The walls were a pale gold colour that becomes brighter when the sun shines in, or when at night the lights are lit.

"The windows too—if you are not planning on repainting the walls, then consider changing the windows." She began to stand, to walk around to change what she could at the moment. An example could be the vase sitting innocently on a table that she planned to move to a display across the room.

Alaude's hand shot out to grab her wrist.

"Finish eating." The rest of them breathed again and felt a wave of gratitude towards Alaude. The siblings had a short glaring contest before Jules remembered her manners.

_After_ her meal, the rest of them insisted that it was time for her to leave. This was because of the urgent tone that was shown in the letter her father sent to them, even though they didn't read the letter themselves.

However, Jules insisted on staying for afternoon tea before leaving. So they had no choice but to let her stay and hope that Vongola Decimo won't be arriving too soon.

* * *

><p>Reborn chose this time to appear.<p>

Giotto's Hyper Intuition sensed that a dangerous aura was approaching him. He turned and saw the man he suspected.

"Reborn, you surprised me."

Reborn tilted his fedora and smirked. "As if anything could surprise Vongola Primo."

"Did you come to tell me something?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. Tsuna has arrived. They are heading up here this very moment."

Giotto sighed. "I suppose we could not get away without the encounter."

Reborn smirked again. "What will you do, Primo?"

"We have no choice but to wait for Jules to finish enjoying her time here."

"It's Reborn!" Jules exclaimed. "Did you come to join us for tea?"

Reborn looked at Jules in the yard. Asari, Lampo, and Knuckle were seated already. Daemon and Alaude were nowhere in sight, and G was standing as far away as possible, smoking a cigarette.

Reborn looked at Giotto. "Do you have espresso?"

Giotto nodded. "Yes…Margaret, could you have someone…?"

"Yes, I'll be right there!"

The two of them joined the rest of the company at the table.

* * *

><p>After running for so long, the messenger boy—Gavino, his name was—reached the train station just as the train was sighted. He glanced at a clock nearby which showed that it was just before lunch. Oh joy; he would be missing his noon meal. Unless he bought something <em>now<em>... He found a stall owned by an old man selling fruit cake. He bought a few and started nibbling on one as he waited for G's guests to step off the train. He spotted them—everyone did, with their loud bickering. He looked over the group and was confused when he saw that they were speaking a different language. Then he noticed that they looked a lot like Primo's family. He shrugged and approached them. He stopped a few times. The first time was in surprise when the very angry one brought out dynamite. When they were put away, he decided to continue, but then something else was said which caused another man to glower and jab a…_trident_ at another male. Gavino sighed and rubbed his head. _They seem similar to my masters._

"_Excuse me?" _He said in Italian. They turned their heads.

"_Tch. What do you want?"_

Okay, so they spoke Italian. _"Master G sent me to bring you back to the mansion._

The brown haired boy smiled and nodded. Gavino looked over the group and counted seven. He looked further into the crowd and spotted another teen wearing a black jacket who looked just as foreign as the rest of them.

"_That chap with you?"_ He nodded to Hibari.

Tsuna glanced back and his mouth twitched. He sweatdropped as he replied. _"Yes, he's with us…"_

The messenger boy began walking, while the guests chattered.

"Juudaime, what if he's not sent by that pink head?"

"Gokudera, why would someone want to lie to us? Besides, we can handle it if anything goes wrong."

"Yamamoto's right to the _extreme!"_

"Kufufu. Hurry up. You're slowing us down, boxer."

"_Uh, excuse me,"_ Tsuna said as he walked beside Gavino. _"Are we…walking all the way there?"_

Gavino grimaced. _"Yes. Master G said that we have to walk back. Painfully slow."_

They had the same looks of dismay on their faces, just as he did when he first heard the news.

"_Why do we have to walk?"_ Gokudera pulled the messenger boy up by his collar and glared into his eyes.

Gavino winced slightly when he saw almost everyone glaring at him in a way that said he would have a painfully slow death. But, he shrugged it off.

"_You have to walk because Master G did not give me a carriage and he ordered us to walk back. Orders are orders."_

"_Why you…"_

"Gokudera, it's alright," Tsuna said and put a hand on Gokudera's arm. "It's just a walk."

"Hai, Juudaime…" He dropped Gavino back to the ground.

"_I'm not going to walk,"_ Mukuro said and frowned.

"Just do it! If Juudaime has to walk then so do you!"

Yamamoto and Ryohei decided to keep everyone from running away to get a ride, which meant holding down Mukuro. Hibari was already gone, and no one could do a thing about it.

"Running is more _extreme!_"

"But have you ever tried to purposely walk slowly, Senpai?"

"I haven't! It's not _extreme!"_

Yamamoto laughed. "Now's a good time to start then."

After a walk which seemed to take forever, the eight of them arrived at the mansion. The guards, whom Gavino conversed with before he left, snickered at them.

"_Have a nice walk?"_

"_Oh, shut up,"_ Gavino said tiredly to the guards. He said to Tsuna, _"I'll leave you here then. You can probably find Masters Giotto and G in the yard out at the back."_

"_Thank you."_

"_Meh." _Gavino walked to the kitchens to find something to drink.

"Come on, everyone," Tsuna said as cheerfully as possible. "We can go home soon!"

* * *

><p>"Oh, well look at the time," G made a big show of holding up his pocket watch. "You have to leave, Jules."<p>

"Do I need to? I'm having a great conversation with Reborn!" She had been talking to Reborn ever since he sat down, although as far as anyone could tell, Reborn only answered when necessary.

"Yes, I'm worried about what your father needed you for," Asari said. He wasn't even lying with this—he really _was_ worried about anything that could have happened.

They all stood and were walking to the front of the mansion. Tsuna's group met them half way.

Both groups stopped and stared at each other when they were a metre apart.

"Who are they?" Jules asked Giotto, who stood beside her.

"Relatives," Giotto said after a pause. "They are…just dropping by before heading home, I suppose…" He said it loud enough so they could hear.

Tsuna nodded quickly, followed by a few of his Guardians.

"I didn't know you had a relative that looked so much like you, Giotto!"

"Yes, well…"_ Neither did I, until a while ago. Who would have known that my relative—descendant—would look so much like me?_

With introductions given, there was a short conversation as they nervously stood by.

Giotto glanced at the group and was relieved to see that Hibari was not present. It would be hard to find an explanation on why Jules and Alaude had a relative that looked so much like her brother without her herself knowing.

"You look so much like Giotto!" Jules said to Tsuna and looked him over.

Tsuna began to sweat. "Ahaha…d-do we?" Jules nodded. "I-I guess there's…a little bit of a family resemblance…"

"Mm," Jules said and cocked her head. "Yes, there seems to be, but it's hard to see when you stutter so. I don't think I've ever seen Giotto stutter so much in a sentence."

Gokudera balled his hands into fists and was about to shout at her, but Jules wasn't done talking. She took both of Tsuna's hands and raised them.

"Wha!" Tsuna exclaimed in surprise. "Uh…what are you doing?"

Gokudera's yelling was ignored by Jules as she examined Tsuna. "Hn. You also seem to be quite puny." Tsuna's face reddened. Jules poked Tsuna's stomach and chest. "You have a bit of muscle but not much."

"W-What?" Tsuna said weakly, wondering _why_ Jules was stating the obvious, hurting what pride he had left.

"How dare you insult him!" Gokudera glowered at Jules.

"O-Oi, Gokudera!" Yamamoto whispered nervously. Jules looked up in surprise.

"My apologies! I didn't mean to insult him at all," Jules laughed lightly and patted Tsuna. "I was just comparing him to Giotto!"

_Could I _not_ be compared to the strongest man alive?_ Tsuna thought with a sob. _At this rate, Reborn's going to go crazy with torture!_

"But," Jules thoughtful tone silenced Gokudera for a moment. "He has a very strong flame." She nodded her head. "That's for sure. Aah! Your hair is just as strange!" Jules proceeded to ruffle Tsuna's hair, and play with it.

Tsuna stood as still as a rock, looking at his own Guardians, and Primo's for help.

"Jules, I think that's enough," Giotto said with a strained smile. He knew how Tsuna was feeling, since Jules had acted the exact same way when she first met him.

Jules laughed and let Tsuna free. He backed away until he was standing behind Ryohei. It was then that she spotted Gokudera, the one who yelled at her.

"Oh my gosh! G, it's your long lost brother!"

"_What?"_ Gokudera wrinkled his nose and then glared at her. "You're saying that I'm that idiot's _brother? _You're out of your mind, woman!"

"He acts just _like_ you!" Jules looked over Gokudera with an awed look in her eyes.

"Hey, stop!" Gokudera tried to pull away from her with a panicked look. "What are you doing?"

"Even the hair is similar…"

"Get off me!"

Yamamoto began to back away, laughing nervously. "Maybe I'll ah, go into the mansion, ne, Tsuna?"

Tsuna shivered. "I'm with you there…but shouldn't we get Gokudera first?"

"Tsuna, Lambo-san wants food!" Lambo cried.

"Ow, ow, ow! Don't pull at my hair!" Tsuna set Lambo on the ground with a sigh.

Lambo caught sight of Reborn.

_Uh oh,_ everyone thought.

"Run!" Yamamoto whispered to all the other Guardians. Gokudera used Lambo's distraction to get away from the clingy Jules who was still laughing over the resemblance.

"But Lambo!" Tsuna protested when Yamamoto and Gokudera pushed him onwards, back to the mansion.

"Leave the stupid cow."

"Maa, maa! He'll be fine! He's with Reborn after all!"

"Nyahahahaha! Reborn! I finally found you! I'll get you this time!"

Lambo threw a grenade at Reborn. Reborn simply tossed it into Lambo's mouth when it was close.

"You're annoying," Reborn said plainly and kicked Lambo into the air, far enough so that they could see but not hear the explosion.

Jules gasped and glared at Reborn. She caught Lambo as he fell and made sure that he was alright.

"Reborn, how could you! He's just a child!" She didn't bother to mention the killing or the grenade part in her lecture. "That was very rude and disgraceful! A fully grown man picking on someone who is so small! I'm ashamed! I'm never going to talk to you again! I'll _never_ marry someone who is so abusive to children!"

Tsuna choked on air at this declaration. He was halfway to the nearest door when this happened. Gokudera looked to be in a state of shock. Yamamoto was looking happily amused.

"See? He's fine. Let's go, Juudaime!"

Vongola Primo's family—namely G and Lampo—were very surprised. Jules continued to shout at Reborn as the hitman just stood there, raising an eyebrow. That angered Jules even more. Lambo's wailing was added to the yelling.

Lampo chuckled and nudged G with his elbow. "Hey, if that was all it took, then you should have beaten up some kids in front of her."

"Lampo!" Giotto shook his head in disbelief.

"Joking, Giotto."

"Yeah?" G grinned evilly at Lampo and cracked his knuckles. His bangs shadowed his eyes, but the evil spark was evident. Lampo shivered. He thought he heard a roar of fire burst behind him. He slowly turned to face G.

"Are you volunteering as the first sacrifice for this grand plan?"

"Whoa whoa whoa," Lampo took a step back from G while shaking his head.

"G, give it a rest," Giotto said. He patted Lampo's shoulder, reassuring the youngest Guardian of the group.

"Tch."

"Jules. You have to go," Alaude said a moment later, not letting her wonder too much about Decimo's family.

"Oh, very well then. Good bye, brother!" She kissed everyone on the cheek and climbed the carriage steps with the help of her driver.

They continued to stand there until the carriage was just a speck in the distance.

"It was a good thing that message came in from your father, Alaude," G said. "Otherwise, she'd insist on staying for another day even though her bags are packed. Hey—Hey, Alaude." The Cloud Guardian was already walking back into the mansion. "What was in the message?"

He stopped and half turned. "What message?"

* * *

><p>After everything had calmed down, Reborn told Tsuna to bring the items to Talbot so he could continue working on the machine. Then he walked away.<p>

"Reborn wants me to carry all this down there? Doesn't he know that I'm a kutz?" Tsuna looked at all the things on the table. He gulped. It wasn't much, but they were all valuable. One little stumble down the stairs…Tsuna shook his head wildly. He didn't even want to think about it.

"We'll help you, Tsuna!" Yamamoto said in a reassuring tone.

"Damn you! I was going to offer to help Juudaime!" Gokudera beamed at his boss. "Juudaime, all three things are in their own box, so each of us could carry one!"

Tsuna smiled. "How could I have thought that I'd have to do it alone?"

"Hahaha! Yeah, how could you, Tsuna? We're with you till the end!" Yamamoto gave Tsuna two thumbs up and a big grin.

"I'll follow you to the end of the earth!" Gokudera declared and blinded them with a dazzling aura.

And so, the three friends went down to Talbot's secret laboratory.

Tsuna opened the door cautiously and called out to the inventor. "Um…Talbot? We have the—"

"Oh, good good! Come right in, you three!"

Gokudera and Yamamoto looked at each other in alarm. Talbot had taken the two of them by surprise by addressing them as well.

Talbot chuckled. "What, did you think that I didn't know Decimo had two of his Guardians with him?"

"Ehahahaha…" Tsuna laughed nervously. He looked at the ground and gulped. There were so many things just thrown on the floor that he didn't know how to safely walk to the work table.

When they finally did, Talbot met them there and touched the three boxes. "Yes, thank you for bringing them! I will be done in a few days. If I go on without sleep, I could possibly be done the day after tomorrow."

Tsuna yelped. "Day after tomorrow! That's fast!"

"That's great! I can't wait to go back to our time," Yamamoto said. "It was so fun being here, but to be honest, I'd rather be back at home playing baseball or practicing with my sword."

"Are you sure you'll be doing it right?" Gokudera asked with suspicion in his voice. "You'll be rushing to finish it. You might miss something."

Talbot was opening the box with the two Virtual Photon Mirrors from Tsuna. He walked back to the machine and felt his way to where it should go. "Everything will be fine, youngling. Now run along and play or do whatever youngsters do these days."

Gokudera looked like he wanted to argue, but Yamamoto and Tsuna pulled him out of the room.

"Aaah! I can see Kyoko-chan again," Tsuna sighed and looked up at the ceiling in longing.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Giotto was working madly in his study. He, with the help of G, was bringing out the most important documents out of the hidden closet. They both then sorted out the <em>most<em> important ones from the others and Giotto started signing.

"I could have done these during Jules' stay if I had known that she would be more serene this time. Darn!" Giotto kicked himself for hiding them.

"You'd never know if she'll suddenly barge in here and open the windows on a rainy day. It didn't happen, but it could have happened. Then if you were really unlucky, the documents would be soaked and you'd be in trouble. It's a good thing you put them away, safe from any antics that might've roused in the past week."

"True, true," Giotto said from beneath the pile of paper. His head was low as he worked through the piles. Read, sign, put to the left. Get another one, read, sign, put to the left… G watched as Giotto fell into the rhythm of paperwork and left the office after seeing that he had done everything he could. He stopped when Giotto called him back.

"Could you go down to the docks? Something happened there earlier today and they need some help. I just got the message now."

"What happened?"

"Don't know."

"I'll go check it out then." G walked out the room as Giotto busied himself again.

"Huh?" Came Giotto's muffled voice when he found something thick sticking out between two papers. He pulled it out and found an envelope. "What's this?" He flipped it over to see the seal. He had a confused expression on his face. Why would this seal show up? Then he remembered a brief conversation a month ago. Something about an invitation to someone's party. "Oh…crap."

* * *

><p>The day after their arrival, Lampo complained to Asari that he was getting bored.<p>

"I thought you liked it like this," Asari said. "This way, you would be able to nap all you want without Giotto or G bothering you about anything. Those were your exact words, Lampo."

Lampo groaned and fell back to the floor. The two of them were sitting on the floor boards of Asari's room, looking out at the view.

"Yes, but with everything that has happened lately, a nap seems…"

"Seems?" Asari said with a smile.

"Too _normal!_ First, Decimo's Famiglia drops in, then there was that boxing raid, and after that, there was that Vongola party. And don't forget all those invitations. I think my hands are still sore from that. What else? Oh yes—Giotto's master comes along, and I get caught in a trap. Don't forget the entire ruckus that we had when Decimo was here. Jules came as well…all of those events happened at least three days from each other." Lampo let out another sigh. "Oh, and the highlight of it all, G picked on me even more because of his bad mood. Wonderful."

Asari laughed and patted Lampo's shoulder. "You'll get used to the…_normal _days soon enough."

Lampo stared at the sky. "Probably. But really…time traveling… it sounds fun. I wonder where I'd be ten years from now."

"We will just have to find out. The normal way."

"I feel like doing something," Lampo said suddenly. He sat up and looked at the Rain Guardian. "Do you have any suggestions? Ore-sama's getting bored.

"Hm…no."

"That sucks."

* * *

><p>Tsuna was lying on the grass outside, relaxing. For once, Reborn didn't have a training schedule set up for him, which meant he had no training. And all his other Guardians were surprisingly well behaved and didn't need Tsuna there to stress over them about it.<p>

But, Reborn _did_ have something planned for him.

Tsuna had his eyes closed when he felt that something was off. So he opened them…and screamed.

"REBORN! What are you going here? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Dame-Tsuna, you should have known that I was here. Your senses have been dulled…more training for you when we get back."

"Oh, please no…"

"Oh, _yes._ In fact, let's start now."

Tsuna groaned. He yelped when Reborn brought out his gun. The smirk on Reborn's face told Tsuna _exactly_ what was going to happen if he didn't move.

Tsuna did the smart thing and ran.

_Pop!_

Tsuna dodged the bullet and turned a corner. Reborn had fixed the gun onto a moving Leon, which was able to track down Tsuna's movements. The gun had a silencer.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Tsuna said. The gun aimed and fired. "Gha!" He moved just in time to miss the bullet. He turned a left and nearly bumped into a maid.

"_Sorry!"_ Tsuna shouted as he ran on.

_Pop! Pop! Pop!_

Tsuna ran into the garden, then into the forest. He wasn't sure where he was going but Leon was able to follow him wherever he went. Now, Leon was flying in the air.

"Omigod, why is Leon flying? Hiie!" Tsuna jumped and continued running. He tripped over a log and scrambled back to his feet. Leon had already caught up. He rolled to the side and ran for his life.

He saw a figure up ahead although he didn't know who it was.

"Please get out of the way!" Tsuna shouted when he was within hearing shot.

"_What?"_ The figure turned around. Tsuna's Hyper Intuition rang an alarm bell.

"Eh?" Tsuna continued running, although there were no shots coming from behind him.

"_Shoot! We've been found out!"_ The stranger gasped. He opened his mouth to shout out loud while pulling out a gun.

"Hiie!" Tsuna automatically dodged the bullet Reborn's gun shot out, not noticing the gun the stranger held yet.

The stranger groaned and fell to the floor.

Tsuna paused and stared at the figure. "Wait…found out?" He looked at the clothing the man wore, then at an emblem on the shirt, and then at the gun. "Ah! That was an enemy! Holy cow, what happened to him!"

Reborn appeared from behind a tree.

"It looks like it's the Lestre Family. They've been bothering Primo lately."

"Hiie! You killed him, Reborn!"

"No, the bullet hit his shoulder. He's still alive. Find Knuckle to tell him about a wounded man. Then go to Giotto or one of the other Guardians to tell them that the Lestre Family is planning an attack. You got all that?"

"H-Hai!" Tsuna gasped out.

_Pop!_

"Youch!" Tsuna jumped a few feet in the air when he realised that Reborn's gun and Leon were still activated.

"You better hurry if you don't want Knuckle to prepare _two_ cots for the wounded."

"This is unfair! There's a crisis going on!" Tsuna ran back to the mansion while cursing Reborn. He got back there safely and saw Hibari up ahead.

"Hibari-san!"

Hibari glared.

"Sorry to bother you! Gotta run! Bye!"

Hibari growled. "Not so fast, Herbivore."

"I-I-I don't have time, Hibari-san! There's an attack on the mansion and I have to tell Knuckle about the wounded enemy!" Tsuna ran off, thinking that Hibari was going to give chase. Which meant he was triple dead.

Hibari stood with a surprised look in his eyes. Then he smirked and brought out his pair of tonfa. "I'll bite them all to death.

_Is Leon going to stop now?_ Tsuna asked as he approached the infirmary of the mansion.

_Pop!_

"No, I didn't think you would," Tsuna sighed. _Maybe I should try to catch it instead._ He turned a corner and waited for Leon to turn as well.

He almost laughed and the confused actions of Leon as the chameleon looked at the empty hall. Tsuna lunged for Leon and caught him.

"Got you!" Tsuna said victoriously. It didn't last long though. The gun turned and aimed the barrel right between his eyes.

_Hie!_ Tsuna grabbed for the gun and tried to pull it off Leon. When that didn't work, he leaned in and found what he was looking for. He released Leon and flicked the the gun into the safety position.

He waited for five seconds. Then he sighed in relief and got off the floor, carrying Leon. Tsuna knocked on Knuckle's door and stepped in.

"Hello, Tsunayoshi," Knuckle said. "Is there something the matter? You're out of breath." Knuckle was instantly up and alert.

Tsuna quickly explained the situation. "There are enemies! The Lestre Famiglia! I bumped into one somewhere in the forest, and he said that they've been found out. Then Reborn appeared and told me to come here. The man's injured. One of Reborn's bullets hit his shoulder and Reborn is probably bringing him here now. I have to find someone else or go straight to Primo to tell him about the possible invasion quickly!"

Knuckle nodded. "God speed, lad."

Tsuna went up the stairs two at a time and ran like a mad man to Giotto's study.

He didn't bother to knock and barged in. He winced as he thought of what Reborn would do to him if he heard of this. "Primo! I'm sorry I didn't knock, but it's important…?" Tsuna blinked as he surveyed the room. "Primo…?" The room was filled with paper, like never seen before. There were a few stacks of paper on the coffee table and an even bigger stack on Giotto's desk. He noticed a box by the foot of the desk, which was also filled with paper. He stepped in cautiously and looked everywhere.

"Oh, I'm over here, Tsunayoshi." Tsuna jumped and snapped his head to the desk. Giotto stood and they stared at one another. Giotto smiled.

Tsuna remembered what he was here for and told Giotto what he told Knuckle. His smile vanished the moment the words 'Lestre Famiglia attack' came out of Tsuna's mouth. He walked away from his desk and towards Tsuna instead.

"And then Reborn told me to come here…" He finished as Giotto approached.

"Thanks. That's very helpful. Knuckle would have alerted all the other Guardians by now." He was rolling up his dress shirt sleeves and talking quickly. "Decimo, I want to you have all your Guardians indoors and in the same room. I don't want everyone to be scattered if trouble comes through the door. Maybe gather them to your room." Tsuna nodded. Giotto continued as he walked quickly. "I'll be in the war room with my other Guardians if you need me."

Tsuna gaped at Giotto. "H-Hai!"

_War room? The mansion has a war room? Amazing…_ Tsuna shook his head and ran one way as Giotto ran down the other.

"Juudaime!" Tsuna stopped in his tracks and looked to the left, where Gokudera was coming down from another corridor.

"Sorry, Gokudera-kun, but you're going to have to go find everyone to them to tell them about the possible attack on the mansion right away! I'll find Mukuro and Hibari. Chrome should be in her room. Gather them and meet in my room!"

Gokudera's eyes widened. "Roger!"

* * *

><p>After doing do, Tsuna paced nervously. There was no commotion currently. There was nothing they could do. Reborn made them stay in the room just when they were about to charge out.<p>

"I can't find Hibari-san!"

"Dame-Tsuna… he probably left the moment you told him about the Lestre Family."

Tsuna gulped. "T-True…wait, how did you know that? You were still outside." Reborn hit Tsuna's head with his fist.

"I know how your head works inside-out."

Tsuna rubbed his head and stayed quiet.

"People are moving into the forest," Yamamoto announced from his seat by the window. They all rushed over to the window.

"It's so _extreme!_ I WANT TO TAKE PART OF IT." Ryohei raised both fists into the air and gave out a mighty war cry.

"Lambo-san will fight too!"

"Kufufu. I don't see why I should involve myself in a mafia fight."

Tsuna sighed and put his hands to his head. "I give up. I can't control them."

Reborn whacked Tsuna with a ten ton hammer. "You've done it before, Tsuna. Control your men!"

"You didn't have to hit _that_ hard!" Tsuna winced as he got up from the floor and made his way towards Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Ryohei. So far, they seemed to be the only people who were arguing in the room.

"Oi, shut up already! You're ruining Juudaime's peace! And you, Stupid Cow! Stop whining!"

"Let's watch to see what happens, ne?" Yamamoto suggested and they successfully calmed Ryohei down. He gave Lambo a candy and promised to play with him afterwards.

Tsuna's jaw dropped as he watched his rare phenomenon unfold in front of him. They stopped their arguments without him interfering. _Well,_ Tsuna reflected, _Yamamoto's there, so I guess it was bound to happen. But the thing is that it was Gokudera-kun who spoke first! And Ryohei actually listened to them…_

"Juudaime?" Gokudera was watching his boss, who was acting strangely. "Is something the matter?"

Tsuna closed his mouth. He grinned at them. "Everything's fine!"

"Kufufufu…he's just proud that his violent Guardians have finally learned some self control."

"Who are you calling violent?" Gokudera demanded.

"Let's not start this now!" Tsuna said quickly before Mukuro could answer. He stepped in between them and gave both Guardians a pleading look. "Please?"

"Only because Juudaime asked…"

They stayed in Tsuna's room for another hour, which is how long it took Vongola's men to fish out all the intruders. They were cuffed and brought into the mansion.

Reborn was making Tsuna learn how to act in these situations by watching their movements.

"See how they aren't bringing these so called intruders to the law? It's because the law can't deal with the mafia."

"What do you mean?"

"The police in the area are corrupted. Not many who are in the police force are willing to help. And for sure, they won't be able to keep all these men because of bribes. They could always be used as hostages if Vongola keeps them."

"Hostages?" Gokudera said. "But Reborn-san, doesn't everyone know that Primo won't kill them?"

"I'm not talking about Vongola Primo, I'm talking about Alaude. Giotto understands what has to be done. And notice how many enemies there are."

Tsuna counted. "Eto…looks like…around thirty…wow!"

Reborn nodded. "Exactly. Now, this is the biggest group that has attacked. What do you think Primo will do?"

"Uh…" Tsuna and Gokudera looked at each other in confusion. Tsuna shrugged. "I don't know."

Reborn bruised Tsuna some more. Then he answered. "One thing that could happen is to have Alaude pull all the information he could out of them, and then make a bargain with the Lestre Famiglia. It's possible that they will have to swear to whatever conditions Vongola gives them, or the Vongola will keep all the captured men in their prison."

Tsuna was confused. "What good will that do?"

Reborn threw him to the ground. "It seems like you still have a long way to go before you can truly take up the spot of Vongola the Tenth, Dame-Tsuna."

* * *

><p>Riku found her masters' guests in the room. She cleared her throat and all the attention was on her. "Excuse me. Master Giotto says that he would like you all to come to the war room."<p>

Reborn nodded and started out the door. Tsuna quickly followed, curious as to how the war room looked. Riku gave him an odd look, which was probably due to how black and purple his face was.

When they arrived, he wasn't sure what to think. There was a massive table in the middle, and the walls were covered with maps. There were also many doors leading in and out of the room for couriers to move quickly. There weren't any large windows in the room but there were small ones at the top of the wall which allowed sunlight to come in.

The Guardians were all sitting on a chair surrounding the table with Hibari was handcuffed to a smaller table which was put against the wall. Alaude stood beside him with his hands crossed over his chest. He was in a bad mood.

"Hibari-san…" Tsuna sweatdropped as he guessed what had happened. Hibari glared at him when he said his name.

"Alaude found that brat in the middle of the clearing, fighting. He had to pull him out of there before he was overwhelmed by _our_ guards, since they didn't know he was on our side," G said when they all stared at Hibari. Hibari was glowering at G now.

"I'm…VERY SORRY!" Tsuna bowed a few times very quickly. "Really…sorry!"

G snorted. "Just keep him out of the way from now on."

The rest of Tsuna's Guardians stared at G as if he just told them to control a monster. Which he did.

"Are you alright?" Giotto asked Tsuna and his friends. They nodded. "That's good. No damage was done. Thankfully, you found out about the attack rather quickly and gave us time to prepare. Thank you."

Tsuna smiled slightly and rubbed his head in embarrassment.

"Tsuna…Lambo-san is hungry…" It looked like Lambo used up all his energy at some point.

"I got it," Tsuna said. "We'll get something to eat then…"

* * *

><p>That night, it was hard for most of them to sleep. They knew that they would be going home the next day, so they were all excited. Tsuna was rolling his bed, with a huge smile on his face.<p>

"Although it was fun staying here, it's always best to be home. I need my video games…Zzzzz..."

...

Gokudera had his hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. He thought that this would be a good time to learn more from the first generation Guardians, since they were known as the strongest generation of all nine generations of the Vongola. Gokudera thought this because he believed that the tenth generation—_my generation—_would be able to rival the first generation.

_But as it turns out, we had to go on this stupid hunt for items because that DAMN Giannini gave Reborn-san that stupid bullet! He is sooo going to get it when we return…he better be ready to be pulverized. _Gokudera smirked and closed his eyes after that thought.

...

Reborn was in the guest room he was given, looking out the open window. He shut it, and went to the bed. All the while, he was wondering what has happened in the future since their disappearance. He had told Nono and Iemitsu about the situation, but what time will they be arriving? Would they be brought to the time, weeks after the time travel, or will Talbot send them back to the exact second they left?

_Either way, it's time I live up to my promises. Starting with Giannini._

* * *

><p>The next morning, all of them had a quiet breakfast. Neither Hibari nor Mukuro were fighting, and Lambo was quiet for once. There were no snarky comments directed at anyone, and no insults food thrown across the table.<p>

Tsuna finished off what was on his plate and looked around cautiously. _It's strange that there's no fighting or conversation going on with this many people. And… the most surprising thing of all…Hibari-san and Mukuro are sitting at the _same_ table. And the table is still in one piece!_

Someone opened the double doors, causing all the heads to turn.

Talbot entered with a victorious grin on his face.

"Vongola Primo, it is ready."

Giotto nodded with a smile.

"About time," G said.

Talbot directed him a toothy grin. "It is thanks to the younger Vongola's help that it was possible! Now, shall we?"

In no time, they were gathered in Talbot's secret lab. Giotto was exchanging a final word with his descendant.

"It was very nice to meet you, Decimo. I'm sure you'd make a good boss one day when you are older. Make sure you keep your loved ones safe."

Tsuna gave him a smile. "T-Thanks, Primo! I definitely will…It was…_so_ nice to see you in person…"

Giotto nodded and looked at Reborn. "Thank you for helping me, Reborn. Take good care of them. They are full of potential."

Reborn smirked. "Will do, Primo."

Gokudera puffed up his chest when Giotto said that they were full of potential. Yamamoto and Ryohei gave each other high-fives as Mukuro chuckled as Chrome blushed. Hibari gave a smirk of his own.

"Lambo-san will become _super_ strong! Stronger than anyone!"

"Yeah right," Lampo said. "Not in a million years."

Talbot cleared his throat. "Now, would Vongola Decimo's family please step forward."

They walked a few steps closer to Talbot, unsure what was going to happen. Giotto and his Guardians backed away.

Talbot was holding the Travel Bomb carefully.

G noticed something. "This looks different than what we saw last time, doesn't it?" Giotto nodded.

This time, the floor was covered by a surface of silver metal, just large enough for nine people to stand on. There were metal walls surrounding it, giving it a box-like feeling. The items that they gathered were installed onto these walls as well as the panels that Talbot was fiddling with at the moment. The ones that were simply tools lay on the table.

"Now, once I insert the bomb into its rightful place, it will begin the process of the spin. Then it will flip itself over and the time bomb will be activated."

"_Bomb?"_ G grabbed Giotto's arm. "Do you know what he's talking about?"

"It'll be fine, I'm sure," Giotto said reassuringly.

Talbot raised the bomb out of the box. He held it so both inner and outer rings were still parallel. The place where he was going to put it was just as round and had just two latches. He slowly moved towards it and pressed the wires against it.

_Click._

The sound echoed in the quiet room. He let go and gravity brought the sand timer turning about. It flipped, like Talbot said it would. And the sand began to slowly move towards the bottom half of the timer. The inner circle also spun slowly, making an ominous sound whenever the two rings passed each other.

Tsuna suddenly remembered something. "Reborn?"

"What?"

"If this really happened…it should have appeared in the Vongola History book, right? Even though we were in the future, and it didn't happen yet, the travel would have taken that into account ages ago, and counted that we would go to the past, and then change the future, so the book we looked at back in the future should have mentioned Talbot and some kind of time traveling."

Reborn hit him over the head. "You're overcomplicating things."

Tsuna opened his mouth to reply.

"But," Reborn said. "Yes, it would have been written down, _if_ this was remembered."

"What are you talking about? Of course they remember. Primo's standing right there!" Tsuna waved crazily at Vongola Primo. Giotto shared a confused look with G at his descendant's antics.

"Ten seconds," Talbot announced.

"Indeed, Primo's family remembers this, _right now_," Reborn agreed.

"Then—?"

"Three seconds!" Talbot announced. He backed away far enough. He gave a light shove and the panel which included the bomb swung inwards to close off Decimo's family from view.

After three tense seconds, a bright white light shone from all corners of the metal box. The roof of it shone the most.

"Whoaa!" Lampo winced and covered his eyes, leaving a small gap to look at what was happening.

The white light shot through and into the sky, causing a hole to appear in Talbot's not-so-secret-lab.

It continued on like this for another three minutes before the light suddenly vanished as though it were not there.

* * *

><p>Tsuna and his friends found themselves back at where they were before they left.<p>

"Ow!" Tsuna fell to the floor of his room about two feet off the ground. He winced and rubbed his rear end. Reborn however, had a more graceful fall. He stood and looked at the digital clock. Three weeks.

"Looks like we were gone for almost a month, Tsuna."

"_A month!_ Were we even in the past for that long? Oh, never mind that!" Tsuna shook his head and ran to his closet.

"Now where did I put that book?" Tsuna asked himself as he tossed out things he kept in his closet. "Ah!"

Reborn sat on a chair and watched with a plain face as his student flips through the book that had everything of Vongola's history that was ever written down.

"Where…where…no, not that…oh, I remember that. No…no…what…? Hey, it's not mentioned!" Tsuna was already on the page that said _Vongola Secondo, _and there was no mention of either Talbot, _or_ time traveling.

"Why isn't it here, Reborn?"

"What do you mean, _why?_"

"Well, you said that if they remembered about it, it would have been written down. But it's not written down…" Reborn cocked an eyebrow. Tsuna said slowly, "So…they didn't remember it? No, that's not possible. They were there when we time travelled!"

"They may have remembered it when we were there," Reborn said slowly. "But not anymore."

Tsuna's shoulders slumped. "You're telling me they somehow got their memory wiped."

Reborn nodded seriously. "Talbot made sure that no one you encountered remembers it."

Tsuna blinked. Then he flopped back and sighed. "I guess that's a good thing…"

Suddenly, he heard a ruckus downstairs.

First it was the constant ring of the doorbell. He heard his mom answer it. "Kaa-san! How am I going to explain this?" Before he got to worry about that, a few of his Guardians barged into his room.

"Ah!" Tsuna sat up so he wasn't knocked over.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, and Lambo were at the door. The four of them stared at Tsuna as he stared back. No one spoke for a few minutes, all of their hearts racing.

"So…" Tsuna broke the silence. "It really happened?"

Yamamoto grinned. "Haha! It looks like we really did travel back in time! I thought I was day dreaming or something."

"It was _extreme!_ I still have the clothing that priest gave me!" Ryohei exclaimed and showed them his bag.

Tsuna laughed. "I totally forgot about that. You got lost in the town."

Lambo apparently had no idea what they were talking about. He leapt into Tsuna's arms. "Tsuna! I had the _best_ dream ever! I traveled back to the past and met those ghost people and beat all of them! Nyahahah!"

Tsuna sweatdropped. He remembered that Lambo was sleeping before they left. Maybe that's why he thought it was a dream. And decided to alter it slightly.

"You Stupid Cow… It wasn't a dream!" Gokudera went on to shout at Lambo, trying to convince him that it really happened.

Tsuna had to laugh at the familiar scene being played out before him. It was as if nothing changed.

"Tsu-kun!" Nana entered the room.

"K-Kaa-san!"

"Did you have fun on your cooking trip?"

"My _what?" _

* * *

><p><em><strong>Back in the past…<strong>_

The next morning, Giotto yawned and sat up. He looked around. So it was just another normal day. Just a few days ago, they found out that the Lestre Famiglia had tried _again,_ to attack them. Luckily, they were found out early and quickly brought to Alaude.

"I guess I have to talk to Alaude soon," Giotto mused as he washed his face and got dressed. He decided that since it was so early, he was going to finish the paperwork in his study.

When he opened the door, he was frozen in shock. Welcoming him were stacks and stacks of paperwork that had somehow piled up.

"How…?" Then he remembered the visit Jules paid them not too long ago. He sighed and shook his head. Then he froze. He closed the doors and quickly made his way to his desk, thinking.

_Even so, there shouldn't have been this much piled up. What's this? Construction fees from the beginning of the month…and this? More fees…and…what on earth…Five consecutive rooms needed to be rebuilt?_

_**"****G! COME HERE THIS INSTANT!"**_

Giotto continued to stand there, staring at the piles of papers in front of him. A lot of them were checks that he had to fill out for the construction company, and a _lot _more of other things. Running footsteps were heard and G barged in. He was dressed in his usual attire, panting.

"What happened?"

"_What_ is _this?"_ Giotto waved grandly at his desk.

G frowned. "Were you slacking off again? What's with all this?"

Giotto narrowed his eyes at him. "That's what _I'd_ like to know. How did five rooms get destroyed in a day?" He held the papers and waved them in the air like a flag.

"Five rooms destroyed…" G muttered and rubbed his head. "What are you talking about?" He snatched the papers and skimmed through them.

"That's odd. I think I recall this happening, but for _why…_I can't remember for the life of me."

Someone walked in. It was Alaude, with the strangest look on his face. Giotto had to think for a bit before recognising a dazed expression mixed with confusion.

"Do you remember why five rooms needed fixing?" G asked.

Alaude paused to think. "No."

"Daemon wasn't in the mansion at the moment…Alaude, you usually don't cause this kind of trouble," Giotto muttered. "Who did it?"

And he caught sight of something else. It was a letter that was already opened, lying on his desk.

He picked it up.

"What's that?" G asked.

"Oh, this?" Giotto shrugged. "It's just an invitation to the birthday party of the heir to the Guinavio Family. I sent in a confirmation letter the moment I found it in the mess." He looked up when no one spoke. "What?"

"When's the party?"

"It's…today. Nine in the evening."

"Why weren't we aware of this?" G demanded. Giotto looked at them in surprise.

"Didn't I tell you?"

"No," both of them replied.

"Oh. Well, now you know. But it doesn't matter. Only the Boss and the right hand man are invited."

"And you _couldn't _have told me. We were talking just yesterday! You just _couldn't_ have just said, oh, by the way, G, we're going to a party tomorrow night. Even that would have been enough! But _no,_ you didn't even mention it!"

"Sorry, G…" Giotto said meekly. G sighed.

"Whatever…"

Alaude stepped up. Giotto asked, "Right, what brings you here, Alaude?"

"There was a prison break."

Giotto and G stared at him.

"A prison break." Giotto cocked an eyebrow. This was hard to believe. _"Here?"_

Alaude blinked. "It was forced open. The bars are beyond repairs. The cell itself is in ruins."

Giotto knitted his eyebrows. "Are we missing anyone?"

Alaude glowered. "No."

"Then…who broke out…?" They looked at one another, unable to come up with an answer.

"Are you sure you don't sleep walk and lock yourself in prison, then break yourself out, and then go back to bed?" G asked.

Alaude stared. "Tell me when I'm supposed to laugh."

"And what on earth is _this?"_ Giotto looked through another pile on his desk. "Why, this is…a _train?_ When was the last time we boarded a _train?"_

"…A _long_ while ago."

"Then _why_ am I getting this… this! It says, _Dear Vongola Primo, we have paid and fixed for the damage caused upon the returning trip of a group under the name of the Vongola. We have enclosed the bill of the amount we have paid as well as the damage report. We thank you for riding in our exclusive compartments and we wish for you to enclose a cheque for the amount given. _And then it goes on and on, and on. Just _look_ at this." Giotto tossed the papers listing the damage done to the train and the cost of repairs. G glanced at it with a blank expression which later turned to one of horror as the list went on.

"Who the hell used Vongola's name to cause this damage? There has to be some kind of mistake."

"The thing is, it seems like _I_ signed the payment for the tickets to the VIP rooms in the first place," Giotto's gloomy voice said. He was holding the tickets the conductor collected and sent them back as proof. He weakly handed them over to G, who stared at them.

"And your signature isn't forged…it's…_your_ signature…what…the…_hell…_HAPPENED?"

* * *

><p>:O<p>

Oh…my gosh. The story's finished! It's…actually complete. I'm sorry to say this, but it is! (Of course, there is still the epilogue)

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, put this on their alerts, and their favourites list! I never thought that this fanfic would actually get so many reviews and favourites! I doubt that I'll be able to write another story that receives as much attention as this one…**THANK YOU! :D**

I had fun writing this, and I hope you had fun reading this too!

Now…time to work on my other story…then, I will have a rest from uploading anything before I publish my new story. My vacation will be a long one, I suppose.


	28. Tying Loose Ends

Sorry if you find any mistakes -_-' Here we go! As the chapter title suggests, this chapter is meant to tie up loose ends (things I didn't really explain throughout the story, or what happened after they returned to the future)!**  
><strong>

**Song used is "Mirai no Oozera e"_, _which is not mine, thanks for asking. **

* * *

><p><strong>Epilogue <strong>

_**The day after they return…**_

Giannini woke up from a horrible dream of being killed by Reborn.

"Oh my… Reborn's threat has really gotten to me, hasn't it…ahaha…" Giannini laughed nervously as he peered into the shadows of his room. He still remembered how shaken up he was when Iemitsu called him, relaying the message Reborn gave Iemitsu. He shuddered again and went back to sleep.

…

Around six in the morning, Giannini awoke with a start. He sat up, wondering why he was awake, and why on earth was he so frightened.

Nothing in his bedroom moved. He scanned it thoroughly and his head snapped back to the door. To his horror, the door to his bedroom slowly creaked open... He pulled up his covers and shook with fear as he waited for the door to reveal whatever was behind it, helpless to do anything else. He gulped.

The door swung open and the early sun revealed a very, _very,_ dangerous man.

"O-O-Oh, my," Giannini stuttered and tried for a smile. "I-I didn't know that you returned, R-R-R-R-Reborn…eh…d-d-did you have a-a-a nice t-trip?"

Reborn stepped into the room. His suit was as black as ever, and his fedora covered his face. He said nothing. As Giannini waited for an answer, he saw the most terrifying thing in his life.

Reborn slowly lifted his head and smirked.

…

Gokudera came in around seven thirty in the morning to find Giannini's door unlocked. He shrugged and walked in without a sound. He examined the kitchen and living room. They were filled with inventions, but no sign of the inventor. He walked up the stairs quietly and found Giannini in his bed, bundled up.

"You got a lot of nerve to cause us so much trouble and not apologising…Tch. And you don't even bother to reply when someone enters your room." Gokudera chuckled evilly and lit a few of his dynamites.

* * *

><p><em><strong>The day after…<strong>_

Giannini lay in the hospital with burns, two broken legs and arms, two twisted ankles and two twisted wrists, a twisted neck, five broken ribs, a bleeding lip, two black eyes, a broken nose, ten broken fingers, and just about a thousand bruises all over him.

Three times he fainted due to the pain. He was awake at the moment, trying his best not to move. The only thing he dared do was breathe and blink and even that, he found risky. He had a private room all to himself with a nice view outside and a vase of flowers beside him. He heard someone approach.

_Eh? Who could it be? The doctor just left, so it can't be them. _Giannini panicked. _C-Could it be? Reborn came to finish what he started? Oh god…please…don't let it be him…_

Giannini watched the door…

He saw the shadow of a figure stand in front of it…

…And the door opened to reveal—

"Yo!"

"GOOD MORNING!"

Giannini recognised that voice. He stared for another long moment before closing his eyes and let out the breath he was holding. Ryohei was grinning from ear to ear. Yamamoto was dressed in plain jeans and a sweater with the hoodie pulled up to cover his face. After sliding the door shut, he pulled it off and gave Giannini a friendly smile. He approached the bed. Ryohei followed him and stood on the other side, grinning.

"Ah," Giannini said carefully. "Hello, Yamamoto-kun, Sasagawa-kun. I'm sorry you had to see me in such a state."

The baseball player laughed. "Well, I hope you get well soon! I brought you some sushi!" He examined Giannini's injuries from top to toe and whistled. "Man, whoever did this to you was merciless! I was shocked when I heard about you in the hospital! Any friend of Tsuna's is a friend of mine!"

"Ahaha…that's good, that's very good…" Giannini smiled slightly. _Whew! I thought that I was going to get beaten up again…good thing Yamamoto has such a kind soul…_

"Whoever did this was _extreme! _I must ask him to join my boxing club! TO THE _EXTREME!"_ Ryohei swore, passionately. Giannini's ears were in pain and he couldn't even reach up to cover them.

"Please lower your voice, Sasagawa-kun…the nurse might come in…"

"Right! I'm _extremely_ sorry about that!"

"Oh, by the way, Yamamoto-kun," Giannini said. Yamamoto pulled up a chair and sat on it with the back rest in front.

"Mm?"

"Why were you hiding your face?"

Yamamoto laughed sheepishly and scratched his cheek. "Well…the last time I visited Tsuna in the hospital, I got kicked out, and Tsuna suggested to hide my face under a hood when I went to see you, so yeah…ahaha."

"Ah."

"Hm, but is it really that serious? You're starting to look like a mummy!" Yamamoto nudged a casted foot curiously.

"A-A-Aaahhhhh….." Giannini screamed weakly. He was in so much pain it hurt to scream. "Y-Yes, Yamamoto-san…it…it hurts that much…it's very painful…"

"Huh." Yamamoto nodded his head solomly. "I hope you get well soon, Giannini-san!" Yamamoto laughed and patted his shoulder friendly-like.

"You have to be like a man, inventor-san! This is nothing!" Ryohei roared. "I was once in a full body cast and I still went on with my training!"

Yamamoto laughed and sweatdropped. "Senpai, that sounds very extreme. You should have rested!"

"Y-Yeah…uh, don't you kids have homework or something?" Giannini wheezed out.

Yamamoto's mouth made an O shape. "You're right! I do. Well, I'll pop by to visit you later!" Yamamoto gave a wave as he left. Giannini gasped for air. "Come on, Senpai!"

"Yosh! Get well soon! We'll be cheering for you _extremely!"_

_Who would have known that even _they_ could cause me so much pain!_ "Ow…"

* * *

><p><strong>Sawada Residence<strong>

Reborn went into Tsuna's room and stood by the bed. He took out his gun and cocked it. Tsuna jumped in the air and landed back on his bed.

"OW!" He was still hurting all over from the injuries conflicted on him by Hibari and Mukuro, as promised. Oh, and don't forget Reborn's promised toru-_ahem_-training. And for some reason, his face was saved from the beatings. He wondered why.

He scrambled to get up.

"R-Reborn!"

"Get up, Tsuna."

"Why? There's no school today!"

"That's because there's a festival."

"What festival?" Tsuna untangled himself and looked at the alarm clock: 7:15. He groaned.

"Does it matter? There's a festival and you're going to be performing with your famiglia."

"Reborn...could you stop dragging us into your st—crazy antics? We only came back from the past a few weeks ago!" This earned him a kick.

"You're going to sing and everyone will sing with you."

"Even you?" Tsuna piped up, curious. Reborn smirked.

"Your concert will be a failure if I'm not there, so of course I'll be there. Get changed!"

Tsuna EEP'd and went to do so. Reborn left the room to go downstairs for Nana's breakfast. His student came down minutes later dressed in a blue t-shirt

with the Japanese characters "Dying Will!" on it. Reborn had left it on his bed before heading down and he knew that he was supposed to wear it. He

wore beige coloured pants.

"Alala! Good luck on your concert, Tsu-kun! Here's your breakfast!" Nana giggled and continued to hum as Tsuna ate.

"Where's Lambo and I-Pin?"

"They're doing stuff for the performance."

"EH? Lambo's willing to help out?"

Reborn's fedora shadowed his eyes. "He didn't have a choice." Tsuna twitched.

"Reborn...what exactly are you making us do this time?"

"You'll be singing."

"Yes, but singing _what?" _In Tsuna's mind, he thought of mafia related songs, or embarrassing things. Reborn tossed him a rolled up piece of paper hit his forehead.

"Those are the lyrics. Memorize you parts before five in the afternoon—that's when you're performing."

"H-Hold it! You need Hibari-san's permission before doing anything big that gathers a crowd that's on school property!" Tsuna smirked inwardly as he found a flaw in Reborn's plan. Reborn smirked right back. He showed his pupil an official document signed and stamped by the Disciplinary Committee, stating that they were allowed to take the stage for five minutes with two minutes for sound set up. They were to get off after that or risk being bitten to death. Tsuna's jaw dropped at the sight of the paper. So far in history, no one—_no one—_ got permission from Hibari personally, to do something at the festivals this big. It was usually his right hand man, Kusakabe who dealt with it.

Tsuna dropped his chopsticks and unrolled the paper. It was two sheets long, for goodness sake! He opened his mouth to complain but shut it when he read the lyrics.

…

For the rest of the day wherever he went, he made himself memorise the lyrics. It was actually easier than he thought it would be. As he looked through it, he saw that the rest of his Guardians were in it as well as Dino, Basil, Haru and Kyoko. Although he was willing to do this, it didn't mean that his stage freight was gone. What if the audience thought they were cheesy and threw rotten cabbages at them? At four, he had a snack from the kitchen. Reborn was the only one with him at the moment, since everyone else was already making their way to Nami-chuu.

"Reborn…are you sure about this?" Reborn gave him a look. "Forget I asked." Reborn smirked. "Kaa-san! We're leaving now!"

"Alright~!" She hummed. "Have fun!"

They walked for a while with Tsuna dodging bullets and Reborn doing the shooting.

"Oh, shoot!"

"Shoot?" Reborn repeated and reloaded his gun.

"Hiiie! No! Not that! A-As in, _shoot!"_

"Yes, shoot…"

"N-no! I mean, _DAMN!"_

"What?" Reborn asked and put a pause to the training.

"Hibari also has parts to sing! How are we going to make him to that?"

"You're the boss. It's your choice. Make sure he sings his part, _or else."_ Tsuna gulped. They continued on.

"Hiie! Reborn! You're going to ruin my clothes if you keep on shooting!"

"Then dodge the bullets!"

…

At school, he saw the stage set up for them. The rest of the student body was also staring at it. Tsuna sighed. Who wouldn't stare? It was the most interesting thing on sight. Who was brave enough to ask Hibari for permission for doing something like that? Everyone else had small stalls where people could play and win prizes, or to eat snacks.

"Nyahahaah! It's baka-Tsuna!" Lambo cried and jumped on Tsuna as an attack. Tsuna caught the boy before their heads could collide. He noticed that Lambo's cow printed clothing was switched for one that was the same t-shirt he wore.

"Lambo!"

Tsuna looked over the afro and saw Haru and Kyoko walking towards him with bright smiles on their faces. He blushed at the sight of Kyoko smiling cutely at him. Both wore the t-shirt as well.

"Tsuna-kun!"

"Tsuna-san!"

"K-Kyoko-chan! Haru!"

"Haru is so excited for this-desu~!" Kyoko giggled as her friend latched herself onto a cringing Tsuna.

"Kyoko," Hana said when she spotted her friend. "Where do you want to go next?"

"Oh…sorry, Hana, but I'm going to be performing something with Tsuna-kun and Onii-san." Hana's eyebrows raised and looked at Tsuna, who was trying to pull Haru away from him.

"With Dame-Tsuna?"

"Hana, it's going to be wonderful! Everyone is excited for it!"

"Hmph. And who's that?" Hana gave Reborn a look-over from head to toe.

"Tsuna-kun's tutor."

"Tsuna, it's time." Hana fell in love with the voice instantly.

Tsuna, Haru, and Lambo stopped bickering. "A-Ah…Kyoko-chan. Let's go," Tsuna called over. They all left. Kyoko waved back to Hana.

"Hana! Come and watch us!"

"O-Oh…okay—wait! Hold it! You're…You're the group that booked the stage! Aren't you afraid that Hibari-san's going to hurt you?" Kyoko laughed.

"It's okay! It's okay! Come watch!" Hana frowned at them for a moment, but decided to go. After all—her best friend was going to do something and she was determined to get a front row seat. _And,_ she thought, _to pull her out of there if something goes wrong. _

All of them met at the back of the stage where the second curtain blocked their view of the actual stage.

"Juudaime! As your right hand man, I will make this a success! Oh, and also, Juudaime," Gokudera leaned in to whisper to Tsuna personally. "That stupid inventor, Giannini, won't be bothering you for a _long _time."

Tsuna's head snapped to Gokudera. "What did you do to him?"

"Haha! This is going to be fun!"

"This is _EXTREME!"_

"Kufufu. I am only doing this because Nagi kindly asked me to come." Chrome blushed.

"M-Mukuro-sama…thank you for coming…"

"Anything for my dear Nagi."

"Sawada-dono! We've arrived as well!" Tsuna turned to the left and saw a slick black car. Beside it were Basil, Dino, and Romario.

"Basil-kun! Dino-san and Romario are here too!"

"Hey, lil' bro!" Dino gave him one of his sunny smiles.

"Everyone's here!" They were all wearing the light, sky blue Dying Will t-shirt. He then noticed that his was a deep, navy blue.

"Reborn…?"

"The boss stands out, Tsuna."

"I don't want to stand out!"

Mukuro switched his normal green jacket and misty background t-shirt for the plain Dying Will one. Chrome kept her Kokuyo uniform's skirt and changed the top for the t-shirt.

"There are two minutes before we go on," Reborn ignored Tsuna's complaint. "Where are those two?"

"Who?" Tsuna looked around. Gokudera was getting into a heated argument with Ryohei and Yamamoto was trying to calm them down. Lambo and i-Pin were playing tag. Mukuro and Chrome somehow picked up a conversation with Dino and Basil. Kyoko and Haru were talking about something while humming the song they were soon to sing.

"Reborn-san! We are here! We're setting up the sound before we start!" A muffled voice said from the other side of the curtain. Tsuna peeked out and exclaimed, "Shouichi-san and Spanner?" They also wore the t-shirt.

"Yo, Vongola!"

"Tsunayoshi-kun!" The two were crowded around one large speaker, fixing the wires.

"You're here!"

"Reborn-san asked us to help out!"

"Since Giannini is useless right now," Reborn said in a low tone. Tsuna sweatdropped. "Well, how's it going?"

Shouichi pushed his glasses up. "We just finished fixing this speaker. It was acting up a little, but it's fine now. All we have to do is get ready, turn up the volume, and make sure all the microphones are working. Then we can play with the music."

"You know how to play instruments?" Tsuna was awed.

"No, we're just using technology based sounds," Spanner supplied. "Okay! We're on in one minute! Get everyone ready!"

There was a moment of rushing before everyone got their microphones. Tsuna peeked out of the curtain and saw that only a few curious people were lingering around, but not daring to approach.

He turned around and saw Hibari leaning out of view in the dark. He looked menacing. Tsuna gulped and approached, inch by inch.

"H-Hibari-san…" He looked up. "Hie—did—did Reborn show you the paper we're going to sing?"

"Hn. Yes."

"D-Do you want to—"

"No."

"P-Please, Hibari-san? We really need you!"

"Hn."

Tsuna drooped.

"Herbivore."

"Hai!" His head shot up, wondering if Hibari changed his mind. Seeing the look in his eyes, he knew that Hibari had _not_ changed his mind.

"If you're not finished by five minutes, I'll bite you to death.

"H-H-Haaai!"

"Oi, Tsuna! Introduce it!" Reborn said and tossed Tsuna yet _another_ microphone. It had a faint hue of purple and he assumed that it was supposed to be Hibari's. He'll hold onto it for now. His blood bumped with adrenaline.

"OK!" Spanner said and gave them the OK sign. He and Shouichi were to the left of the stage, also invisible, where they could man the controls. They both had headphones on. Romario stood beside them to keep an eye on his boss. Tsuna took a deep breath and closed his eyes to calm himself. The rest of the family stood a few steps behind him, spaced out to give everyone enough room, and to move forward to the centre when it was their turn to sing.

Shouichi pressed a button and a sweet, delicate melody blasted out of the speakers accompanied by the sound of drums. The intro wasn't supposed to be long, but they extended it so that it would give Tsuna more time to talk and for the crowd to gather. Plus, they were ahead of schedule, thanks to the brilliance of the two mechanics, and were off to a great start. The curtains rose and Tsuna saw the large amount of unfilled space in front of them. With him standing in front with all his friends supporting him, he felt comforted. Slowly, people started to notice where the music was coming from. It was louder than the speakers at the stalls, and they were curious to see what was happening. Even more so, they saw Dame-Tsuna standing at the front of the stage with his popular friends behind him.

Gokudera and Yamamoto fan girls ignored Tsuna and squealed to see their idols on stage. The males saw Kyoko and ran to see what was happening and why she was up there, knowing she might get bitten to death. The rest just followed because a crowd meant excitement.

"Hello everyone!" Tsuna shouted into his mic. "My friends and I have a song that we'll like to sing to everyone! I hope you will enjoy it with your Dying Will!" His smile grew at the last part, knowing that Reborn was probably smirking. "The song's title is 'Mirai no Oozera e'!"

Another sequence of the song played before he and Reborn began singing. Reborn moved with him to the front of the stage and their high and low voices combined:

"If you're in discouraging times, reach out your hands high in the sky!" Tsuna did so as Kyoko and Lambo started the next. He and Reborn moved back, and he was jumping inside. He could believe they were actually doing this! It was so fun—he'll never admit that in front of Reborn, though. He gave Lambo a high five as Lambo and Kyoko moved to the centre. The rest of the group mingled around and moved to the beat. Kyoko was holding Lambo sweetly as Lambo had a big grin on his face. Instead of a mic, they gave him thin headphones that had a small mic attached. This way, he and I-Pin could keep their hands free.

The crowd digested the lyrics of the song. Gather at everyone's best place, huh…why didn't they think of doing that before? They always kept it in…

As they sang, Tsuna swayed and moved forwards a bit, in seeing Hibari's prefect jacket at the curtains.

He didn't know what possessed him, but he was so giddy with fun that he threw Hibari's microphone to the owner.

It was quick and hard. The crowd gasped as they thought that Tsuna was going to ruin the song they were also getting a feel into. They didn't expect Hibari's hand to fly up to his face to catch the mic that would have broken his nose. He gave Tsuna a glare, but Tsuna didn't seem to notice since he was looking at Hibari expectantly.

Hibari snorted. It wasn't as if he said he wasn't going to sing, right? He stepped into the spot light. To Tsuna's surprise—or not, Hibari wore the light blue t-shirt as well, with his ever present black jacket over his shoulders.

The crowd's eyes widened. Tsuna—_their _Dame-Tsuna, had the guts to throw something at the Disciplinary Committee Leader, Hibari Kyoya! And to add to that, Hibari's smooth voice began to sing.

"Suddenly, the clouds flow." Just those words had the crowd go oozy. Who knew that Hibari had such a voice?

The girls instantly looked at Hibari with a new eye. The girls looked at their friends with the same determination in their eyes. They couldn't believe that they didn't do this before! They _had_ to make a fan club for Hibari. Why didn't they do this before? They knew the answer. It was because they always avoided him out of fear and never tried to look at him in the face in case he became violent. His attitude also stopped people from looking or talking to him, so they never noticed his looks at all. But now that he wasn't glaring, they _saw_ him. But before they knew it, his part was over and he stepped back. As he did, he gave Tsuna's head a punch and Yamamoto walked to the centre, a hand raised and waving at the crowd, singing.

Then a soft and sweet voice rang in the air. "Come to the place where the rainbow forms…" Chrome was shy and didn't want to stay in the front of the crowd. As she sang, she walked to the centre. Yamamoto gave her a reassuring glance. She smiled and did a little twirl before moving to the other side. Reborn also walked to the centre at the same time and sang his line.

"Wasn't that a Kokuyo girl? That's their uniform!" someone from the crowd hissed.

"No way! The school that had some kind of grudge on us!"

"Who knew that their chicks were so hot!" These were in whispers and Mukuro did not hear them, thank the gods.

Kyoko came out from somewhere behind the group and Haru from another direction. They jumped and giggled when they reached the middle and the crowd blushed. They brought their hands out and gestured towards the students watching.

"Your smile, our smile!"

"Who's that girl?"

"Looks like she's from Midori! That private school that's very tough!"

"Sawada's friends with her?" Someone asked in disbelief. "How are his grades still so low?"

"Not only that, how did they become friends in the first place!"

As they finished singing, Gokudera gave Haru a scoff and Haru stuck her tongue out. Gokudera found this very offensive and started mouthing name callings at her. Haru's eyes widened and she jumped to him, trying to land a punch. He laughed quietly and darted away. Gokudera fans watched with surprise and jealousy.

Then their attention was torn to the ones currently singing. It was the most ridiculous combination ever! And who was that dude with the pineapple hairstyle?

Ryohei, Mukuro, and Hibari were singing.

"Even fighting, even being different," Hibari was…was singing! Oh, his new fans could just die. And then that handsome man beside him…hm…and _what!_ For once, Ryohei was calmly singing with only the slightest hint of extremeness!

"Missing the days running for one's lives." By now, the commotion with Haru and Gokudera had spread to most of the group and they were running around. Tsuna was laughing quietly and trying to get his family under control. Haru ran to the front and sang her part enthusiastically. With her gone, they seemed to stop messing around.

"How much time has passed by?" I-Pin jumped into Haru's arms. "Treasures glowing from our hearts!" They left while Basil gave them a slight bow. "Humming a melody…"

"Is my important family!" Tsuna opened his arms as if to embrace the world.

There was a pause in their singing as music played. Tsuna gave Shouichi and Spanner a glance and grinned. _My important family. Reborn, that is so true. I don't know what I'll do without them._

Then Lambo and I-pin ran up.

"Gulagulagulagala! Lightning also shines in the dark! Take a deep breath, let us calmly endure these tears!"

Dino approached with Basil following close behind. Their verse made Tsuna think of his own clumsiness and how Reborn always pushes him, forcing him to get back up even when he didn't want to. Gokudera finally sang and his annoying fans held their breath, anticipating the wonders of Gokudera Hayato.

"The rising storm…"

"The rising SUN_SHINE!"_

"Hidden in the mist of the future…"

"It continues to the blue sky!" Tsuna sang. Gokudera and Yamamoto came up to Tsuna. As their friend moved to let them take the stage, both of them flung their arm around him to make him stay. Tsuna panicked for two seconds before relaxing. For once, Gokudera wasn't going to make Yamamoto let go of Tsuna. Once.

"What kind of dream, what kind of miracle." The audience squealed at the two most popular guys (Mochida was kicked off the list after Gokudera shunned him) in their school sang a duet. Cue pictures being taken. At least Tsuna didn't look so no-good at the moment.

"I wonder what is waiting to face us!"

By now, Chrome was getting into the song and was impatient for her next part to come up.

"Come on, Chrome-chan!" Haru giggled and grabbed Chrome's hand

"Even if I can't see it, even if I don't know of it, it'll surely be a tumultuous story!" was sung as if replying to Gokudera and Yamamoto's wondering. They all smiled at each other and moved off to either side to let Dino, then Lambo, then Kyoko to sing their lines.

"The ones close by…"

"Are the best family," Reborn finished off and the entire group moved and scattered around to get ready for the next verse after a twenty-seven second break.

Tsuna and Basil came up. Tsuna loved this part. It spoke out what he truly thought in his heart.

"All the things, all the people," he gestured to his family and gave them more smiles, "supported my life!" Hibari and Dino walked forwards. Hibari made the best effort to stay away from Dino. He glared at the Cavallone boss:

"I know, no matter what…" Ryohei sang, pumping a fist. Yamamoto came up beside him, "It's alright! Facing the future!" He sang and made eye contact with the crowd, as if he was talking to each individual. The time when he attempted to suicide. Tsuna convinced him to go on, and face the future. Now, he will tell everyone out there to never give up.

"Cycling the seasons," Mukuro gave the crowd a sly smile. Gokudera glowered at him.

"With my family!"

At this, balls of scrunched up papers fell in the crowd. People ducked down to pick them up to see what was in it.

"Sing with us!" Tsuna cried happily when he caught on what was going on. The students, parents, and a few of the teachers present smiled and opened their mouths to sing this song. They sang as one.

"_Your smile! My smile! Looking for the page to be drawn!"_ People started to swing their friends around and laugh, enjoying themselves.

"_Even fighting! Even being different! Missing the days running for one's life!"_ That part they didn't really understand. But the ones in the mafia understood perfectly. After everything they've been through together, Tsuna just felt that he couldn't sit still in his normal life.

Tsuna looked around and gestured for Spanner and Shouichi to join them for the last part. At first they blushed and refused but Tsuna stomped over to them and pulled them out with Yamamoto and Ryohei's help.

Seems like whatever drink Reborn gave Tsuna still had its effect...

"_How much time has passed by! Treasures glowing from our hearts! The one humming the melody…Is my IMPORTANT FAMILY!"_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Back in the past…<strong>_

During one of those hangout hours they had, Lampo slammed his fist onto the table where Asari and Knuckle were playing a board game.

"I've had it!"

"Now what are you going on about?" G sighed and put his legs up on the table.

"I need to know!"

"Know what?" Giotto asked. He was sitting by the window, lying down on a two person couch with a book in his hands.

"About G and Jules!"

"What about them?" Asari looked up from his game with a laugh.

"I want to know what happened when they met, why Jules is so fixed onto G, how it was Giotto's fault, and just…the history! I think it's about time I know about this dark, secret!"

"Dark?" G raised his eyebrows.

"Secret?" Daemon chuckled. He had just walked in and sat on the remaining plush seat.

"Why should we tell _you?"_ G snorted and glared at Lampo.

Giotto tried to reason with them."Lampo is part of the family. We're going to have to tell him one day."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean _today."_

Alaude, who was in his own corner, just sighed in annoyance. "I'm out of here," he grumbled.

"So, let's get on to the story," Giotto said and sat upright from his place. Lampo grinned and grabbed a plate of snacks for the story.

Asari and Knuckle continued playing as they listened to the story.

"It started a long time ago, when…how old were we?" Giotto looked at G for an answer.

G growled "It was six years ago. Eighteen years old. The worse year of my life."

Giotto nodded. "Right. So Lampo, most of us were eighteen. And we were…what were we doing…ah, yes. I was following Alaude home."

"You _what?"_

Giotto grimaced. "No, Lampo, I wasn't stalking him. I just wanted to return something he dropped. I forget what it was. But anyways, G wouldn't let me go alone, so he came with me, along with Knuckle and Asari. Daemon…hm…yes, I think you were with us."

"Nufufufu. No I wasn't," Daemon said. Giotto nodded.

"Yes you were. Although you were invisible at the time."

Daemon narrowed his eyes as he chuckled. Giotto shrugged and continued.

"It was then that we were introduced to Jules, and she wanted us to stay for a while."

"You're forgetting that Alaude doesn't live there," G put in. "That was Jules' own home, and Alaude was paying a visit."

Lampo stared at them in horror. "Alaude…paying…_visits?"_

Giotto chuckled. "Stop interrupting, if you want to hear the rest of it." He waited for Lampo to quiet down and continued. "At the time, I was already feeling a bit unwell. I was getting a headache, but I didn't think much of it. After our meal, Jules asked me if I wanted to row with her across the river to pick apples. I promised that I'd go with her. But later, Alaude came to me and told me that if I wanted to live to a ripe old age, I should avoid going."

"He didn't listen at all!" Asari exclaimed with laughter. "He actually wanted to go with her!"

Giotto's face flushed and he continued on quickly in a louder voice. "_Anyways,_ I collapsed because of a fever and was brought to the guest room. At the time, I was thinking that it wouldn't be nice to leave Jules to go on her own, so I asked G if he would go in my place."

"And he just _agreed" _ Lampo gaped at G. "G, what were you thinking!"

G glared while Giotto chuckled. "G was reluctant to go with her, since he said that _I _was the one who promised, so _I_ should go with her, fever or no fever. He was about to drag me out of the room and onto the boat."

"I could have done just that, since you were so weak," G muttered.

"Then why didn't you?" Lampo challenged.

Giotto raised a finger and waited dramatically. "I fainted when he knocked my head against the door frame."

Lampo looked at Giotto with an expression that said, "Seriously?"

"And G will have to pick up the story from there!" Giotto grinned at his best friend, who glowered back.

"So? What happened?" Lampo turned to G expectantly.

G gave up and sighed. "We went to the other side and got out. Stuff happened and we ended up staying there longer than we should have. Wild animals came out and I had to fend them off. She saw me as her knight in shining armour after rescuing her from being attacked by a bear and there. We went back and she wouldn't let go of me."

"Nufufu. You don't have a romantic bone in your body, do you? You made it sound like a funeral speech."

"Tch."

"So there," Giotto said to Lampo. "That's the great story of how Julia—known as Jules, Alaude's baby sister, ends up falling in love with G. Ta-daaa." Giotto bowed in his seat like a magician would after showing a trick.

"But what _stuff _happened, G? What happened?" Lampo pestered G.

"Stop following me!"

"Come on, you can tell me!" Lampo continued to annoy G for the rest of the day. Who would have know he could be so persistent!

_**O.o.O**_

_**THE END**_

* * *

><p>Gosh. The singing part seems really cheesy now that I think about it. And it sucks when not sung in Japanese… blah. Oh well... (Looks back at chapter) PFFFT! I was planning on shortening the epilogue when I went over it, but I ended up adding more things to it…opps.<p>

Well…this is the final FINAL chapter of this story, and I hope you enjoyed tying up loose ends!

To **Guest: **Hahaha! Yeah, I feel sorry for Giotto as well. Not even remembering what caused the damage. Hahahaa. =_=' And yes, that's a real song. Look it up on youtube and you'll find it.

Thank you for every single review everyone sent in for this story! :D I appreciate every single one, whether they were about what you liked about it, opinions, or criticism!

Until next time,

BYE!

_**-LLM**_


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